BANCROFT 

LIBRARY 

•> 

THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


THE  WESTERN  ECHO : 

A    DESCRIPTION 


OF  THE 


Western  States  and  Territories 


OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 


AS  GATHERED  IN  A  TOUR  BY  WAGON. 


BY 


GEORGE  W.  ROMSPERT. 


DAYTON,     OHIO  : 

United  Brethren  Publishing  House. 

1881. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1881, 

Bv  G.  W.  ROMSPKRT, 
t  n  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 


lANCROr  l 
LIBRARY 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE. 

FRO  NTISPJECE. 

THE  PRAIRIE  FIRE Ill 

INDIAN  CRUELTY 131 

THE  MOUNTAIN  LAKE 282 

SCENE  IN  THE  SIERRA  NEVADA  MOUNTAINS 361 

SAN  FRANCISCO  BAY 386 


CONTENTS 


PAGE. 

PREFACE 11 

INTRODUCTION 13 

PA  R  T     I. 

CHAPTER   I. 

Start  from  Dayton— Coal-Mine— Indianapolis — Illinois 
Roads— Springfield— Crops— Poor  Water— Missouri 
River — Enter  Iowa — Enter  Missouri — Kansas  City 
— Des  Moines  Valley  and  City — Western  Iowa — 
Fourth  of  July  at  Lewis— Council  Bluffs 17 

CHAPTER     II. 

Omaha — Homestead  Land — Coming  Onto  the  Plains — 
Cold  Winds— Platte  Valley— Republican  Forks- 
Fort  Wallace— Big  Sandy— Old  Battle-Ground— 
Arkansas  Valley— Irrigation  Farming 41 

CHAPTER  III. 

Arrival  of  Lesher  and  Wonderly— Our  Start  South- 
First  Buffalo  Herd — Cimaron  River — Strayed  Team 
—Old  Hunters— How  to  Hunt  Buffaloes— Wolf 
Hunt— Prairie  Fire — Herd  at  Ten-Mile  Creek- 
Blizzard— Find  a  Frozen  Man — Hide  Season  Ends..  73 


O  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Summer  Trip  Through  the  South— Indian  Agencies- 
Canadian  River— Lion  Fight— Red  River— Double 
Mountain — Staked  Plains  —  Pecos  River — Indian 
Skirmish— Santa  Fe,  New  Mexico— Return  to  the 
Arkansas  Valley  —  Description  of  the  Plains  — 
Mirage— Dangers  of  the  Prairie— Wild  Horses  and 
How  Captured— Creasing  Animals 128 

CHAPTER  V. 

Cattle-Business  Explained — Branding  Stock — Round- 
Up—  Mavorick — Beef-Gathering — Stampedes — Ten- 
der-Feek-Stock-Raising  in  Texas— Cattle-Trail— 
Buying  Cattle  from  Trail— How  to  Enter  Stock 
Busi  n ess — S heep-Raisi  ng — G reasers — Te  xas  Cattle- 
Fever. 168 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Cow-Boy  History— Mustangs  and  Broncos— Cow-Boys 
with  Six-Shooters—  Dodge  City— Boot  Grave-yard— 
Prairie  Mysteries— Dance-Halls— Sketch  of  Buffalo 
Bill — Theory  of  the  Plains — Trading-House — Ante- 
lope Chase— We  Prepare  for  a  Mountain  Tour 201 


PART      II. 

CHAPTER  I. 

We  Start  for  the  Mountains— Las  Animas— Pueblo- 
Colorado  Springs— Manitou— Mineral  Springs— We 
Ascend  Pike's  Peak— Balancing  Rock— Garden  of 
the  Gods— Devil's  Hole -Return  to  Manitou 241 


CONTENTS.  9 

PAGE. 

CHAPTER  II. 

Start  for  South  Park— Ute  Pass— Rainbow  Falls— South 
Park— Bear  Fight— Lead  vi  lie— Sallie  Ray— Chimney 
Gulch — Trout-Fishing — Denver — Cheyenne  —  Black 
Bitter  Creek — Antelope  Springs — Wolf  Adventure 
— Green  River — Old  Emigrant  Road — Echo  Canon — 
Utah  — Park  City— Ontario  Mine  — Quartz-Mill  — 
Kinds  of  Mines— Prospecting— Start  for  Salt  Lake..  274 

CHAPTER   III. 

"View  [of  Salt  Lake  Valley  and  City— Tabernacle— His- 
tory of  the  Mormons — Joe  Smith — Came  to  Kirt- 
land,  Ohio — Brigham  Young  Converted — Located  at 
Independence,  Missouri — Located  at  Nauvoo,  Illi- 
nois— Joe  and  Hiram  Smith  Killed — Emigrated  to 
Council  Bluffs— Came  to  Salt  Lake— Trouble  with 
the  Government — Mormon  Theology 329 

CHAPTER   IV. 

We  Leave  Salt  Lake — Reach  the  Sierra  Nevada  Slopes — 
Tunnels,  Gorges,  etc.  —  Reach  California  —  Sacra- 
mento—San Francisco— Hotel  Runners— Fruits- 
Palace  Hotel— Chinese— Dennis  Kearney  and  Party 
— De  Young-Kalloch  Tragedy— Chinese  Bakers- 
California  Climate— Ships— Golden  Gate— Wood- 
ward Garden— Portland,  Oregon— Washington  Ter- 
ritory— Sail  for  Santa  Barbara  and  Los  Angeles — 
Prescott,  Arizona — Meet  General  Fremont — Big 
Trees— Return  to  Ohio....  356 


PREFACE. 

It  is  the  object  of  the  author,  by  this  volume,  to 
place  before  the  people  a  brief  history  of  the  western 
states  and  territories  through  which  he  traveled  in 
a  late  long  overland  tour,  together  with  a  sketch  of 
the  customs  and  occupations  of  the  people  in  all  the 
parts  described.  A  journey  by  wagon  through  so 
much  territory,  by  so  many  unknown,  has  furnished 
the  author  with  knowledge  that  will  be  of  so  much 
value  to  persons  who  think  of  going  West,  and  more 
especially  to  those  who  intend  trying  their  fortunes 
in  the  regions  of  the  setting  sun,  that  he  feels  him- 
self somewhat  in  duty  bound  to  reduce  it  to  print. 
Many  fabulous  and  speculative  histories  have  been 
written  of  the  same  country ;  and,  with  prejudiced 
pens,  they  have  been  deceitful  records.  Far  from 
this  is  the  motive  of  the  present  writer.  And  he 
hopes  the  fruits  of  his  labor  will  prove  valuable  to 


12  PREFACE. 

persons  who  intend  relying  upon  the  merits  of  the 
West  for  a  future  livelihood  as  well  as  those  who 
intend  journeying  thither  merely  for  health,  specu- 
lation, or  pleasure;  for  to  all  such  this  work  is 
respectfully  dedicated. 

Dayton,  Ohio,  May  1, 1881. 


INTRODUCTION. 

Ever  since  there  was  an  East  there  was  a  West, 
and  from  the  fact  that  the  great  race  of  humanity 
had  its  birth  upon  the  highlands  of  Asia,  the  latter 
has  always  been  a  land  of  discovery,  into  which  the 
boldest  of  an  overpopulated  country  must  make  the 
the  first  strides,  contend  with  the  greatest  dangers 
and  exposures,  and  break  the  first  soil.  The  great 
pair  of  Eden  have  wonderfully  multiplied;  and  their 
posterity,  like  a  mighty  wave,  is  fast  flowing  toward 
the  western  horizon.  This  great  emigration  has 
been  a  continuous  seige  of  adventure ;  and  many  a 
worthy  life  has  been  lost  while  opening  the  road 
that  must  soon  bear  the  broad  marks  of  civilization. 
Many  volumes  contain  the  records  of  humanity; 
and  the  most  interesting  and  touching  part  of  man's 
career  is  the  frontier  life,  which  has  been  a  continu- 
ous battle  in  the  wilderness  ever  since  the  first  back 


14  INTRODUCTION. 

was  turned  against  the  eastern  sky.  What  a 
glorious  thing  it  has  ever  been  that  for  every  dif- 
ficulty there  has  been  a  surmounter,  and  for  every 
wave  a  rider !  What  a  treasure  to  the  world  was  he 
who  first  plowed  the  foaming  Atlantic  and  moored 
his  bark  upon  the  shores  of  the  great  America ! 
The  event  has  proved  one  of  necessity  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  growing  millions,  and  is  a  lesson  that 
for  every  creature  there  is  a  home.  The  mighty 
rivers  that  flowed  so  long  in  vain  through  the  East  of 
this  golden  land  now  bear  upon  their  bosoms  mighty 
ships,  laded  with  the  produce  of  the  soil.  The  little 
streams  that  rippled  so  long  unheard  upon  their 
pebble  beds,  have  all  kissed  the  ruby  lips  of  civiliza- 
tion ;  and  the  splendid  soil  that  yielded  so  long  to 
the  savage  tread,  has  at  last  found  a  husbandman, 
and  fields  of  golden  grain  wave  proudly  where  the 
roots  of  the  mighty  forests  have  long  since  decayed. 
But,  like  every  other  country,  the  first  part  found 
has  been  the  first  overdone.  One  half  of  the  world 
knows  not  how  the  other  half  lives  ;  and,  likewise, 
thousands  who  live  in  the  civilized  and  improved 
East  are  perfectly  ignorant  of  the  great  country  ly- 


INTRODUCTION.  15 

ing  west  of  them.  True,  the  land  has  been  crossed 
and  the  history  written  ;  but  the  accounts  have  been 
so  varied  that  many  who  have  a  desire  to  find  new 
homes  and  breathe  purer  air,  feel  quite  a  delicacy  in 
putting  everything  they  have  to  so  uncertain  an  ad- 
venture. Many  examples  of  families  seeking  their 
fortunes  in  a  land  of  which  they  have  not  even  the 
most  limited  knowledge, — or  into  which  they  have 
been  betrayed  by  the  misrepresentations  of  those 
who  value  money  in  their  own  pocket  higher  than 
comfort  in  the  poor  man's  family, — and  returning  in 
perfectly  destitute  circumstances,  have  proved  this 
fear  to  be  well  founded.  Nearly  all  the  histories 
that  have  been  written  of  the  land  now  in  view 
were  got  up  by  land-sharks,  or  by  persons  who 
took  a  single  tour  through  the  country,  often  on  the 
train,  and  not  seeing  one  eighth  of  the  country  of 
which  they  write,  nor  stopping  long  enough  in 
a  place  to  learn  the  ways  and  customs  of  the  in- 
habitants, nor  testing  the  soil,  climate,  and  general 
prospects  of  the  country  upon  which  the  emigrant 
must  rely.  Far  from  this  method  has  been  the 
means  of  this  author's  information,  which  he  wishes 


16  INTRODUCTION. 

to  place  before  the  people  in  the  present  volume. 
With  a  deep  conviction  of  common  duty,  every  line 
is  marked;  and  the  many  facts  gathered  by  so  much 
peril  and  exposure  will  certainly  be  a  valuable  fount- 
ain to  all  those  to  whom  this  work  is  dedicated. 

G.  W.  E. 


THE  WESTERN  ECHO. 

T    I. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Start  from  Dayton— Coal-Mine — Indianapolis — Illinois  Roads 
—Springfield— Crops— Poor  Water— Missouri  River— Enter 
Iowa— Enter  Missouri— Kansas  City— Des  Moines  Valley 
and  City— Western  Iowa  —  Fourth  kof  July  at  Lewis  — 
Council  Bluffs. 

A  back  turned  upon  the  State  of  Ohio  is  a 
back  turned  against  the  Eden  of  the  'Union !  And 
to  a  person  whose  lot  it  has  been  to  be  born  in 
this  beautiful  land,  and  whose  borders  he  has 
never  crossed,  to  think  of  quitting  a  civilized 
and  happy  home  to  wander  in  the  land  where 
the  savage  screams  and  the  growl  of  the  wild 
beast  may  be  heard  is  certainly  somewhat  em- 
barrassing. Nevertheless,  being  more  than  ordi- 
narily interested  in  the  narratives  of  the  frontier, 
the  author,  with  two  comrades/ John  Routsong 
and  Johnny  Lair, — being  stout,  robust  young  men 


18  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

of  the  vicinity  of  Dayton, — resolved  to  test  the 
truth  of  what  we  had  heard  and  read  by  seeing 
for  ourselves,  even  if  it  had  to  be  done  at  the 
price  of  a  hair  or  two.  Accordingly,  a  topped 
spring-wagon  and  a  good  team  were  procured, 
and  lightly  we  tripped  along,  eager  to  prove 
ourselves  Davids,  and  anxious  to  wrap  ourselves 
in  the  robes  of  the  wild  buffaloes  of  the  prairie, 
the  giants  of  our  own  slaying.  The  first  part 
of  our  journey,  from  its  novelty,  was  the  merri- 
est ;  and  sweeter  dreams  than  we  dreamed  while 
lying  upon  the  hard  ground,  with  nothing  but  a 
tent  to  shelter  us  from  the  dews  of  heaven,  were 
never  dreamed  by  a  king  in  his  palace.  Wish- 
ing to  fully  experience  the  effect  of  camp-life, 
we  did  our  own  cooking  from  the  start;  and 
never  having  graduated  in  the  pastry  art,  we 
were  obliged  to  forsake  knickknacks.  And  how 
natural  it  was  that  we  grew  more  and  more  hardy 
from  our  new  diet,  which  we  eat  in  the  pure, 
open  air.  Being  in  the  month  of  June,  the 
weather  was  warm  and  the  roads  were  delight- 
ful, and  we  merrily  passed  along  until  we  found 
ourselves  treading  Hoosier  soil.  As  we  wended 
our  way  toward  the  interior  of  the  state,  equestri- 
anism became  quite  common  ;  and  in  some  of  the 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  19 

back  parts  of  the  country  we  were  amused  at  see- 
ing the  people  finding  their  way  to  church  in  two- 
horse  farm-wagons.  Many  other  little  novelties 
and  changes  attracted  our  attention ;  and  we 
musingly  passed  along  until  we  stood  upon  the 
bank  of  the  W abash  River,  where  stands  the 
pleasant  little  village  of  Montezuma.  The  stream 
is  about  two  hundred  yards  wide;  and  being  very 
deep,  we  found  it  necessary  to  take  the  ferry. 
This  was  something  new  to  us;  and  as  we  floated 
across  the  stream  we  imagined  ourselves  in  the 
Mayflower,  plowing  the  foamy  Atlantic,  and  car- 
rying with  us  the  seeds  of  life  and  death.  The 
former  we  calculated  for  all  who  wished  us  no 
harm  ;  but  the  latter  we  fully  meant  tc  spring 
up  in  the  path  of  the  wild  buffalo  and  the  bear. 
Our  imaginary  ocean,  however,  was  soon  crossed; 
and  having  been  told  by  the  ferryman  that  there 
was  a  coal-mine  up  the  river  a-piece,  we  deter- 
mined to  visit  what  we  had  never  before  had  the 
opportunity  of  seeing. 

There  lay  the  dark  fuel,  and  here  ran  the  tun- 
nel into  the  foot  of  the  hill  whence  came  the 
coal.  Of  course,  wanting  to  see  it  all,  we  deter- 
mined to  explore  the  thing  to  our  satisfaction. 
The  tunnel  being  but  three  feet  wide  by  three 


20  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and  a  half  high,  we  were  obliged  to  stoop  very 
low.  Onward  we  went,  bold  as  the  lion  in  his 
cave,  lightly  talking  of  the  great  dampness  and 
the  little  car-track  that  wound  its  way  so  far 
into  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  etc.,  etc.,  until  we 
found  ourselves  about  fifty  yards  from  the  day- 
light door.  Here  a  slight  caving  from  the  side 
of  the  passage  caused  a  panic  in  a  party  of  three, 
and  for  some  minutes  the  bowels  of  Vesuvius 
never  kneTP  a  greater  rumbling  than  v>-as  heard 
in  the  tunnel  of  that  coal-mine.  When  the 
weakest, — who  had  been  trampled  into  the  mud 
by  the  stampede, — had  once  more  dragged  him- 
self into  daylight,  we  concluded  that  we  knew 
all  about  coal-mines,  and  thought  it  not  necessa- 
ry to  penetrate  anymore  hills  to  inform  ourselves 
better.  Betaking  ourselves  to  the  wagon,  we 
once  more  resumed  our  journey. 

Coming  into  the  splendid  city  of  Indianapolis 
one  bright  morning,  we  were  greatly  struck  with 
its  great  life  and  beauty,  and  concluded  to 
camp  in  a  pretty  grove  just  back  of  the  great 
asylum  and  spend  a  few  days  in  surveying  and 
acquainting  ourselves  with  the  Hoosier  capital. 
The  first  was  reception-day  for  the  horse-traders, 
who  swarmed  to  us  from  all  directions.  They 


THROUGH    THE    WEST. 


21 


were  all  good,  clever  fellows,  and  offered  us  a 
chance  to  make  fifty  dollars  in  a  single  swap. 
The  boys  wanted  to  trade,  but  I  had  conscien- 
tious scruples  against  taking  the  advantage  of 
such  good-hearted,  honest  fellows,  and  prevailed 
on  the  boys  to  deal  gently  with  the  innocent. 

The  great  clouds  of  dark  smoke  that  curl  from 
the  engines  of  the  thirteen  railroads,  the  deafen- 
ing sound  of  the  car-bells  at  train-time,  together 
with  a  depot  that  is  surpassed  in  size  and  mag- 
nificence by  but  one  or  two  in  the  United  States, 
speak  the  advantages  of  this  thriving  and  lovely 
city.  Its  court-house  is  also  a  model,  being  one 
of  the  finest  in  the  land.  Having  informed  our- 
selves to  our  satisfaction,  we  again  pulled  out. 

The  roads  having  been  good  and  the  weather 
fine,  our  trip  through  Indiana  was  a  pleasant 
one,  indeed ;  but  upon  our  approaching  Illinois 
we  found  the  character  of  the  country  materially 
changed.  The  large  beach-forests  began  to  fade 
away,  and  before  us,  like  a  great  ocean,  spread  a 
broad  and  fertile  prairie  all  covered  with  richest 
vegetation.  Here,rtoo,  the  prairie- chickens  began 
to  fly,  and  small  game  became  abundant.  This 
was  sport  for  us,  and,  with  guns  in  hand,  we 
some  days  almost  veiled  the  sun  with  smoke  and 


22  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

feathers — especially  smoke.  From  the  want  of 
timber,  fences  became  very  few  and  the  fields 
contained  many  acres.  We  were  compelled  to 
haul  our  wood,  for  cooking  purposes,  for  many 
miles,  upon  different  occasions.  In  case  we  for- 
got to  take  wood  along  when  we  left  where  it 
could  be  had,  I  shall  not  attempt  to  tell  you 
where  we  got  our  fuel,  but  will  simply  remark 
that  he  who  passes  through  Illinois  by  wagon 
without  pulling  middle  rails  from  the  fences  or 
tearing  down  barn-yard  gates  must  certainly 
have  a  mighty  conscience  dictating  for  him. 

There  is  no  gravel  here,  and  the  loose,  black 
soil,  dampened  by  the  almost  incessant  rains  of 
this  region,  render  the  highways  rivers  of  mud. 
There  were  a  great  many  emigrants  along  the 
road,  bound  for  a  home  beyond  the  Mississippi; 
and  to  see  them  turning  their  honest  faces  in  all 
earnestness  toward  the  heavens  as  if  wondering 
if  something  had  not  burst,  was  truly  an  af- 
fecting sight.  Instead  of  good  hard  pikes  lead- 
ing into  the  cities,  there  are  nothing  but  graded 
mud-roads;  and  we  saw  four  horses  to  a  hearse 
stall  in  the  middle  of  one  of  Springfield's  main 
streets,  and  in  the  center  of  town.  A  gravel- 
bank  in  central  Illinois  would  be  a  fortune  in- 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  23 

deed,  and  by  its  aid  Springfield  could  be  made  a 
most  beautiful  city.  The  state-house  situated 
here  is  an  immense  structure,  covering  a  great 
area,  and  supporting  a  flag  live  hundred  and 
thirty-one  feet  in  the  air.  Flags  and  military 
relics  of  several  nations,  together  with  many 
other  curiosities,  are  kept  here  for  the  public 
view;  and  persons  going  this  way  and  having  an 
opportunity,  should  by  all  means  spend  a  half- 
day  in  going  through  this  great  museum.  The 
cost  of  the  building  is  about  ten  millions.  It  is 
built  of  stone  and  is  fire-proof.  Being  rainy, 
and  wood  very  scarce,  we  concluded  to  pitch 
our  tent  on  the  common  for  the  night,  and  go  to 
the  Central  Hotel  for  supper.  This  was  our  first 
meal  inside  of  a  house  since  we  started,  and  dress- 
ing ourselves  in  our  long  hunting-coats,with  great 
deep  pockets  in  the  sides,  we  were  the  center  of 
attraction  and  comment;  and  we  naturally  felt 
inclined  to  have  as  much  sport  upon  our  side  as 
the  landlord  and  guests  were  having  upon  theirs. 
Accordingly,  we  sat  at  a  table  to  ourselves ;  and 
having  caught  the  eyes  of  one  of  the  fair  wait- 
resses, we  politely  marked  the  bill  of  fare  and 
began  relating  some  of  our  great  adventures, 
and  Indian  and  lion  fights  through  which  we 


24  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

had  dragged  our  lives  by  a  single  hair.  And  this, 
with  our  peculiar  expressions  and  appearances, 
aroused  great  curiosity,  and  whisperings  could 
be  heard,  "Which  is  Buffalo  Bill?"  "They 
are  fierce-looking  fellows,  ar'n't  they?"  After 
we  were  served,  taking  advantage  of  the  good 
lady  as  she  turned  away,  with  a  sort  of  sleight  of 
hand  the  roasted  potatoes  and  biscuits  found 
their  way  to  the  bottom  of  the  great  side  pock- 
ets, and  we  called  out,  "Potatoes  and  biscuits, 
please!"  Apologizing,  and  having  the  good 
lady  believe  that  we  had  eaten  nothing  for  some 
time,  we  stayed  at  the  table  and  played  our  game 
until  the  lady  grew  pale  and  the  great  pockets 
were  pulling  heavily  at  our  sides.  We  now  re- 
marked that  we  thought  we  could  wait  until 
morning,  and,  seizing  our  great  broad-brims, 
started  for  camp.  The  lady,  with  a  sigh  of  re- 
lief, looked  after  us  as  if  to  say,  "  They  must  be 
powerful  fellows !  A  biscuit  or  potato  is  no 
more  than  a  pill  to  them  !"  The  next  day  there 
was  a  long  article  in  the  Springfield  paper  about 
three  hunters  and  their  mighty  capacities. 

The  street-car  track  is  laid  in  the  center  of  the 
street,  and  between  the  railing  it  is  planked. 
Taking  this  we  succeeded  in  getting  through  the 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  25 

muddiest  city  in  the  world,  and  arrived  in  camp 
safely,  well  pleased  with  our  supper  and  the 
faithful  lady.  When  the  city  was  dead  in  slum- 
ber, and  deep  darkness  hung  o'er  it,  not  wishing 
to  disturb  any  one,  we  innocently  seized  a 
couple  of  chicken-coops  that  we  found  in  the 
back  yards,  and  then  did  our  own  cooking. 
When  we  were  breaking  up  the  coops  into  fire- 
wood down  at  camp,  we  were  surprised  to  find 
a  couple  of  chickens  fast  in  the  laths.  This 
made  me  so  mad  that  I  jerked  their  heads  off 
right  then  and  there.  John  stood  looking  on 
with  a  troubled  gaze,  and  as  they  lay  there  fat 
and  motionless,  he  said,  "Boys,  it  is  too  bad  to 
waste  those  fowls  that  way  ;  I  think  we  had  bet- 
ter cook  them."  Well,  after  considering  the  hell 
we  might  raise  by  throwing  dead  chickens  over 
the  common  in  that  way,  we  decided  to  make  a 
stew.  Feathers  make  very  good  pillows,  you 
know ;  and  we  were  very  careful  to  pick  up 
every  one.  We  stored  the  wood  in  the  wagon, 
very  carefully  out  of  the  way,  and  of  course  had 
breakfast  very  early — for  you  know  how  curious 
people  are  when  persons  are  going  through  the 
country,  and  how  they  hang  around  their  camp, 
especially  if  they  have  chickens.  To  avoid  all 


26 


this  we  had  everything  cleaned  up  at  daylight, 
and  then  and  there  made  a  rule  that  no  person 
should  be  permitted  to  fool  around  the  wagon. 
That  wood  and  those  feathers  were  hard  to  get ; 
and  one  does  not  know  what  thieves  might  be 
lurking  around.  In  a  few  days  we  pulled  out, 
striking  north-west  for  Iowa. 

Illinois  is  a  level,  rich  state,  and  but  for  its 
great  rains  it  would  certainly  be  one  of  the  best 
as  well  as  the  prettiest  states  in  the  Union. 
There  is  a  great  deal  of  corn,  and  some  spring 
wheat  and  barley,  etc.,  raised  here;  but  because 
of  the  little  snow  that  falls,  and  the  great  freez- 
ing and  thawing  of  the  black,  loose  soil  of  this 
region,  fall  sowing  is  not  successful.  Stock- 
raising  is  the  principal  business  of  the  people, 
however,  and  for  this  the  state  is  particularly 
adapted.  Land  back  from  the  cities  being 
usually  cheap  (from  $20  to  $40  per  acre),  most 
farms  are  large  and  improvements  limited. 
Barns  and  cribs  are  often  but  rail-pens,  and 
thousands  of  bushels  of  corn  lie  exposed  to 
the  sun,  only  rounded  on  top  to  turn  the 
mighty  rains.  What  a  contrast  between  this 
careless  method  of  storing  away  corn,  and  the 
careful  cribbing  and  covering  by  Ohio  farmers  1 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  27 

The  cobs  are  most  all  more  or  less  musty,  and 
the  grain  damaged  at  the  kernel,  and  we  could 
hardly  get  corn  that  our  horses  would  eat. 
They  feed  most  of  it  to  hogs  and  cattle.  Hedge 
fences  are  fast  coming  in  use,  and  ere  long  the 
whole  state  promises  to  be  thus  inclosed. 

With  a  great  deal  of  effort  we  at  length 
reached  the  western  border  of  the  state.  And 
were  I  to  tell  you  the  true  condition  of  the  roads- 
during  the  greater  part  of  our  journey  in  the 
state,  it  would  appear  incredible;  for  sometimes 
the  ground,  in  low  places,  would  shake  for  ten 
feet  upon  either  side  of  the  wagon.  The  surface 
is  often  dry,  and  cracked  by  the  sun,  and  when 
you  break  through  that  you  are  stuck;  and  that 
is  just  as  sure  as  the  wrath  to  come.  Several 
times  we  were  in  to  the  axle,  and  not  a  rail 
within  five  miles.  There  would  have  been  the 
place  to  try  old  Job ;  for  if  he  did  not  curse  God 
and  deny  all  creation  after  viewing  the  situation, 
well  might  he  be  called  "  Job,  the  patient  man." 
Being  most  of  the  time  sick,  from  the  poor 
water  we  found  in  the  state,  and  utterly  discour- 
aged with  the  bottomless  roads,  it  is  needless  to 
say  that  we  were  glad  to  get  through.  The  peo- 
>le  told  us  that  some  winters  they  found  it  nee- 


28  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

•essary  to  take  the  wheels  off  and  tie  soap-kegs 
to  the  spindles  to  skim  over  the  mud.  Spring- 
vehicles  are  very  scarce  in  the  country,  and  the 
most  delicate  society  move  round  in  two-horse 
wagons  and  on  horseback.  Roads  that  wo 
thought  were  almost  impassable  they  considered 
good.  It  is  amusing  to  see  a  party  of  young 
folks  out  riding,  with  sometimes  four  and  five 
couples  in  one  wagon,  and  boards  across  the  bed 
for  seats.  On  they  go,  merry  as  larks.  The 
wheel  runs  into  a  chuck-hole,  the  board  breaks, 
and  like  magic  the  scene  is  changed,  and  number 
ten  shoes  and  striped  hose  are  cutting  the  air 
like  muskets  at  the  battle  of  Bull  Run.  Not- 
withstanding our  good  times  in  hunting  and  the 
great  hospitality  of  the  people,  we  had  enough 
of  Illinois,  and  one  glorious  day  we  had  the 
pleasure  of  standing  for  our  first  time  upon  the 
banks  of  the  mighty  Mississippi.  Of  course, 
the  northern  and  southern  parts  of  the  state  are 
not  as  low  and  muddy  as  the  central  part  herein 
described;  but  what  has  been  said  will  be  veri- 
fied by  like  experience. 

The  Mississippi  River  is  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in 
width  at  this  place  (Keokuk),  and  is  spanned  by 
&  powerful  iron  bridge.  We  had  never  seen 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  29 

steamboats,  and  were  much  amused  by  observing 
them  here,  moving  up  and  down  like  ducks  upon 
the  water.  Like  old  Daniel  Boone,  we  looked 
at  the  blue  waters  of  the  rolling  stream  and 
longed  to  tread  the  beyond.  There  we  once 
more  found  ourselves  out  of  the  mud,  where  the 
hills  were  covered  with  beautiful  trees,  and  pure, 
cool  water  flowed  from  the  crystal  springs. 

Traveling  only  for  information,  we  had  no  par- 
ticular route,  and  for  the  novelty  we  crossed  the 
Des  Moines  River  into  Missouri,  thus  eating 
breakfast  in  Illinois,  dinner  in  Iowa,  and  supper 
in  Missouri. 

Being  told  that  there  were  many  turkeys  and 
deer  in  Missouri,  we  concluded  to  go  south  as 
far  as  the  Missouri  River.  The  northern  part 
of  the  state  is  very  rough,  and  well  timbered; 
but  as  you  go  south  the  surface  flattens,  and 
many  acros  are  still  covered  with  the  same  sod 
and  forests  that  accommodated  the  wild  beast 
and  the  savage  years  ago.  It  is  fast  settling  up, 
however,  and  rude  huts  are  reared  in  all  direc- 
tions. We  were  cleverly  received  in  the  back 
country,  and  never  failed  to  be  saluted  at  every 
shanty  by  four  or  five  great  hounds.  Peeping 
into  the  house  you  will  see  one  lying  upon  the 


30  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

table,  one  licking  the  pots,  one  washing  the 
baby's  face,  and  the  rest  stretched  out  by  the 
stove, — quite  a  pleasant  sight,  indeed. 

Visiting  Kansas  City,  the  great  western  empo- 
rium, situated  at  the  junction  of  the  Kansas  and 
Missouri  rivers,  we  were  much  surprised  to  see 
the  amount  of  business  carried  on  in  what  but  a 
few  years  ago  was  a  vacant  plain.  There  are 
several  large  wholesale  houses  here.  Everything 
is  lively,  and  the  business-din  can  be  heard  a 
long  way  off. 

Northern  Missouri  and  Iowa  are  certainly  the 
best  cherry  countries  in  the  world ;  for  every  little 
cherry-sprout  was  bending  with  the  largest  and 
finest  fruit.  Now,  we  were  all  very  fond  of  cher- 
ries; and  knowing  our  cherry-capacity  better 
than  any  other  persons, — whom  we  had  not  yet 
visited, — we  concluded  to  buy  our  fruit  on  the 
following  terms  :  Driving  up  to  a  place  where 
the  trees  were  red  and  bending,  we  tried  our 
best  to  look  like  gentlemen, — I  mean  fellows 
who  look  as  though  they  would  take  a  cherry 
between  thumb  and  finger,  and,  after  rubbing  it 
with  a  silk  handkerchief,  put  it  in  the  mouth, 
squeeze  it  with  the  tongue,  spit  out  the  seed,  etc. 
"We  then  asked  the  owner  what  he  would  charge 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  31 

us  apiece  for  permission  to  eat  a  few  cherries 
from  the  trees.  I  suppose  we  must  have  suc- 
ceeded pretty  well  in  our  trial  to  appear  delicate, 
for  we  bargained  generally  for  five  cents  apiece  ; 
and,  mighty  Lord !  when  we  perched  ourselves 
in  the  branches  and  began,  the  money  did  not 
pay  the  cherry-man  for  the  time  he  and  his 
family  wasted  in  watching  us,  besides  the  cher- 
ries that  our  sort  of  gentlemen  could  and  did  eat. 
We  never  went  over  the  same  road  twice ;  but  I 
suppose  they  do  not  sell  cherries  on  the  tree 
along  there  any  more. 

Going  north  from  Kansas  City,  we  again  took 
the  Des  Moines  River  Valley,  and  went  for  the 
capital  of  Iowa.  We  were  raised  in  a  pretty 
country,  and  we  passed  through  some  on  our 
journey  ;  but  this  lovely  valley,  about  two  miles 
wide  and  of  the  very  richest  soil,  spreading  out 
level  as  a  floor  and  covered  with  rich,  golden 
grain,  the  dwellings  here  and  there  all  sur- 
rounded with  trees  loaded  with  beautiful  fruit, 
divided  by  the  Des  Moines,  rolling  between 
banks  all  skirted  with  mighty  sycamores,  is  cer- 
tainly an  Eden  to  behold. 

Coming  into  Des  Moines,  we  found  a  pretty 
city,  with  nice,  broad  streets,  but  no  gravel.  It 


32  ROMSPERT'S   TRAVELS 

is  situated  on  both  sides  of  the  stream,  and  *all 
the  water  is  forced  from  Coon  River.  There  in, 
not  a  well  in  the  town.  The  new  state-house 
had  been  worked  at  six  years,  and  it  would  re- 
quire about  four  or  five  more  to  finish  it.  It  is 
seven  hundred  feet  long,  and  when  finished  will 
certainly  be  a  grand  structure.  It  is  being  built 
of  stone,  and  its  cost  is  approximated  at  five 
millions  of  dollars. 

Leaving  the  Valley  and  striking  west  for 
Council  Bluffs,  we  opened  into  a  wild  country, 
and  for  the  first  time  realized  that  we  were  leav- 
ing civilization  behind.  The  broad  forest  had 
entirely  faded  away,  and  the  surface  that  had 
begun  to  wave  at  the  great  river-bank  had  now 
become  very  rough,  and  the  steel  of  the  hus- 
bandman had  not  yet  pierced  the  aged  sod.  A 
broad,  open  land  stretched  out  before  us,  like  a 
sea  whose  waters  were  tossed  by  a  mighty  wind, 
and  marked  only  by  the  dim  trails  that  led 
from  one  to  the  other  of  the  distant  little  sod 
domiciles.  Great  herds  of  cattle  may  be  seen 
upon  the  hill-sides  of  this  rich  pasture-land,  and 
large  flocks  of  sheep  are  bleating  in  the  valleys. 
The  country  being  very  rough,  there  is  very 
little  farming  done;  and  a  fence  is  a  novelty. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  33 

Herders  are  employed  upon  these  conditions : 
They  are  to  take  care  of  the  cattle  on  the 
prairie  for  four  months,  salt  them,  and  stand  all 
losses, — unless  the  brand  of  the  missing  animal 
can  be  produced, — and  while  boarding  themselves 
they  receive  one  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents 
per  head  ;  and  often  having  five  and  six  hun- 
dred head  together,  there  is  money  in  it;  and  a 
number  of  young  men  find  employment  here. 

It  was  only  with  great  effort  that  we  found  our 
way  over  the  rough  prairie  and  unbridged 
streams,  in  which  we  often  stuck.  The  country 
looks  as  if  God  had  carefully  made  the  hills  to 
order,  and  then  fitted  them  together  as  closely  as 
he  could;  and  heavy  rains  falling  here  all  run 
down  the  hills  into  the  valleys,  which  are 
usually  very  soft,  and  many  times  the  water 
stands  very  deep  in  them.  There  was  one  time 
(and  which  I  shall  not  soon  forget)  that  we 
came  to  a  slough  about  fifty  yards  wide.  We 
could  tell  by  its  look  that  it  was  a  bad  crossing, 
and  as  far  as  we  could  see  either  way,  it  appear- 
ed the  same.  So,  seeing  several  old  wagon 
tracks  through  it,  we  pushed  in.  Starting  in 
lively,  we  managed  to  get  about  half  way,  when 
the  wagon  was  in  to  the  hub  and  the  mud  so 

3 


34  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

stiff  that  the  horses  could  get  no  further.  There 
we  were  in  the  middle  of  a  slough  between  the 
hills  of  Iowa,  and  the  prospect  of  our  being  any- 
where else  for  some  time  about  as  limited  as  a 
boy's  show  for  victory  in  a  tight  with  a  red- 
headed school-marm.  You  may  all  talk  of  wis- 
dom, but  I  will  bet  a  million  if  Solomon  himself 
had  been  there,  he  would  have  stood  out  upon 
the  bank  and  said,  "  Boys,  you  are  in  a 
worse  fix  than  five  hundred  wives  have  ever 
been  able  to  put  me."  But  after  about  exhaust- 
ing our  ingenuity,  we  at  length  unhitched  our 
horses  and  took  them  across.  Tying  a  long 
rope  to  the  end  of  the  tongue,  we  hitched  the 
team  to  it  and  pulled  the  wagon  on  a  lock.  Un- 
luckily for  me,  I  had  the  appearance  of  being 
the  best  wheel-horse  in  the  crowd;  and  though  I 
coughed  and  told  the  boys  that  getting  into  the 
mud  and  over  exerting  myself  would  certainly 
be  the  cause  of  my  death,  they  still  insisted.  Just 
then  finding  that  they  too  were  consumptive, 
and  limping  with  pain  in  every  joint,  I  consent- 
ed to  take  my  chances ;  and  after  preparing  for 
the  occasion  like  any  person  would  in  such  cir- 
cumstances, where  clothes  were  scarce  and  no 
one  near,  I  waded  into  the  doughy  sea.  I  held 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  35 


the  wheel  from  going  back,  while  Johnny  pulled 
the  wagon  on  a  lock  on  my  side.  I  would  then 
draw  myself  up  out  of  the  mud,  take  a  few  long 
breaths,  and  after  touching  up  my  will-power 
with  a  little  Iowa  bog-sirup  that  we  had  along, 
go  to  the  other  side.  We  worked  thus  from 
left  to  right,  moving  a  foot  at  a  time;  and 
at  length,  when  the  bottle  could  have  been 
broken  without  wasting  much  sirup,  we  once 
more  stood  upon  terra  Jirma.  We  had  often 
heard  of  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death,  and 
right  then  and  there  concluded  that  if  that  was 
not  it,  it  must  be  a  fork  of  it,  and  if  we  found 
that  it  reached  from  the  north  to  the  south,  we 
would  go  by  the  way  of  the  gulf  on  our  re- 
turn. However,  after  washing  our  horses  all 
over,  and  trimming  ourselves  up  to  once  more 
look  like  white  men,  we  felt  a  little  more  ex- 
perienced and  none  the  worse.  We  were  about 
ready  to  start  again  when  we  caught  sight  of  a 
middle-aged  Dutch-woman,  with  two  little  mules 
to  a  spring- wagon,  arid  a  great  coop  of  chickens, 
bearing  down  the  hill-side  to  the  same  mud-hole. 
"Willing  to  lend  our  experience,  especially  to  a 
lady,  we  most  politely  spoke  to  her;  but  she  paid 
no  more  attention  than  if  a  prairie-dog  had 


36  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

barked  at  the  road-side.  Well,  thought  we,  it  is 
a  nice  thing  to  be  independent;  but  that  mud- 
hole  may  bother  you  some,  and  may  be  the 
means  of  our  becoming  intimately  acquainted. 
Sure  enough,  when  she  got  to  about  where  we 
stuck,  the  little  mules  gave  out  and  one  of  them 
lay  down.  You  may  all  talk  of  whoops  and 
halloos,  but  the  yell  of  the  rebels,  the  groans  of 
the  dying,  and  the  thundering  of  the  cannon  at 
the  battle  of  Stone  River,  were  not  to  be  com- 
pared to  the  shouts  of  that  Dutch-woman  in  the 
midst  of  the  Iowa  bog.  Nevertheless,  neither 
the  angry  countenance  nor  the  force  of  the 
brawny  arm  had  any  effect  upon  the  little 
mule,  which,  like  Job,  had  determined  to  take 
it  patiently.  If  you  could  have  seen  the  un- 
earthly smile  upon  her  face  as  she  looked  back 
to  us  and  yelled,  "  Coom"  you  would  have  been 
surprised  at  the  great  change  one  mud-hole  and 
one  Dutch-woman  can  bring  about.  Wading  in 
to  where  the  little  Job  lay  prostrate,  I  took  hold 
of  his  bridle  and  gave  him  a  kick  in  the  ribs  and 
an  English  yell;  and  doubtless  never  having 
heard  an  English  word  in  his  life,  it  apparently 
frightened  him  so  that  he  forgot  all  about  the 
mud-hole.  The  last  we  saw  of  the  Dutch- 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  37 

woman  she  was  going  over  the  brow  of  a  hill, 
sitting  upon  the  back  of  her  neck,  screaming  in 
the  key  of  E,  the  old  chicken-coop  tossing,  the 
chickens  squalling,  and  the  little  mules  down  to 
a  mile  a  minute.  If  it  had  not  been  for  that 
ugly  bog  to  cross  we  would  have  looked  after 
that  outfit ;  for  the  way  that  coop  was  bobbing 
it  might  have  fallen  out,  and  the  poor  chickens 
would  have  starved,  for  she  never  could  stop  the 
mules ;  and  you  know  if  we  had  found  them 
we  would  have  fed  them.  This  was  one  more 
lesson  of  experience,  and  we  started  on. 

A  few  hours'  travel  brought  us  into  the  little 
village  of  Lewis ;  and  the  next  day  being  the 
Fourth  of  July,  we  concluded  to  stay  over  and 
have  some  fun.  We  enjoyed  ourselves  very 
well;  and  as  the  end  of  the  gala  day  drew  nigh, 
people  found  that  we  were  travelers  and  gathered 
around  us  to  trade  horses.  Well,  we  had  one 
horse  that  wanted  to  stop  very  often  when  we 
were  in  a  great  hurry,  and  having  given  us  a 
great  deal  of  trouble,  we  concluded  to  cheat  some- 
body to  get  even  with  Iowa  any  how.  Of  course 
we  showed  quite  an  unwillingness  to  trade ;  but 
when  a  fellow  brought  a  fine  young-looking 
horse  around  and  warranted  him  safe  and  sound, 


38  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and  to  work  any  place,  we  traded,  thinking 
there  was  no  harm  in  cheating  a  man  when 
he  proposed  the  trade.  We  swapped  even,  and 
he  throwing  a  saddle  upon  his  new  horse  was 
soon  out  of  sight.  Proudly  we  buckled  the  har- 
ness npon  ours,  and  everything  being  ready  I 
drew  up  the  lines  to  start,  when  behold  !  like  the 
wife  of  Lot,  his  action  had  all  vanished  and  he 
stood  as  immovable  as  Pike's  Peak.  He  was 
worse  than  the  other  one,  for  she  would  go  when 
the  wagon  was  started,  but  this  one  refused  to 
go  if  you  just  stood  him  before  the  wagon  with- 
out harness  on.  Then  we  pulled  the  wagon  out 
of  town  with  one  horse  and  camped  for  the 
night.  Of  course  we  got  him  with  a  warranty, 
but  where  in  the  thunder  was  the  warrantor? 
All  had  vanished.  Many  persons  came  around 
with  old  plugs,  thinking  that  of  course  we 
would  trade  for  anything  that  would  pull.  We 
told  them  he  was  the  kind  of  a  horse  we  wanted, 
and  in  the  morning  we  would  show  them  some- 
thing. 

Morning  came,  and  putting  the  harness  on 
him  we  put  up  the  traces  and  tied  his  tail  to 
the  single-tree,  when,  to  the  surprise  of  all,  he 
started  off,  pulling  the  whole  wagon,  the  other 
horse,  and  all.  The  horse-traders  swore  the 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  39 

like  was  never  seen  in  Iowa;  and  they  looked 
after  as  with  wonder  until  we  were  over  the  hill. 
We  were  delighted  with  our  success,  and  all 
went  along  smoothly  until  we  got  about  five 
miles  from  town  and  came  to  abridge  where  the 
dirt  was  washed  away  from  each  side;  and  the 
wheel  striking  this,  he  balked  on  the  tail.  We 
knew  he  had  good  shoulders,  and  he  had  shown 
us  that  he  had  a  noble  tail;  and  to  refuse  to  use 
either  was  an  insult  to  us,  and  we  set  about  to 
use  compulsion.  It  was  not  long,  however,  be- 
fore the  tongue  was  cracked  and  both  single- 
trees broken,  and  the  battle  just  begun.  John 
went  back  to  town  to  get  the  breaks  mended, 
and  Johnny  and  myself  set  to  work  in  earnest. 
We  had  used  kind  words  and  coaxed  him,  all  to 
no  purpose ;  for  as  long  as  you  were  friendly  he 
was  as  gentle  as  a  lamb,  but  as  soon  as  you 
wanted  to  make  him  work  he  considered  our 
friendship  at  an  end.  So  we  took  him  from  the 
wagon  and  tied  up  one  foot  and  put  on  throw- 
ropes  and  hitched  him  to  a  bush.  Of  course  he 
refused  to  go,  and  every  time  he  refused  we 
pulled  him  down.  When  he  pulled  one  bush, 
we  put  on  another.  We  had  seen  bad  horses, 
and  we  had  heard  of  the  devil,  and  we  concluded 
that  he  was  one  fourth  bad  horse  and  three  fourths 


40 

devil.  We  worked  hard  until  late  in  the  after- 
noon before  he  would  pull  his  part  of  the 
spring- wagon.  Just  as  he  was  beginning  to 
work  two  men  came  along,  going  east.  They 
had  a  good  two-horse  wagon,  and  we  traded. 
We  now  had  a  good,  stout  wagon,  and  the  next 
morning,  after  a  little  squabble,  we  had  no  more 
trouble,  and  the  buckskin  mustang  was  con- 
quered. Our  experience  was  such  as  to  make 
us  tired  of  Iowa,  and  after  determining  never  to 
cheat  another  western  man  out  of  a  horse,  even 
if  he  did  name  his  own  terms,  we  rapidly 
pushed  on  until  we  stood  in  the  streets  of 
Council  Bluffs.  This  is  a  neat,  pretty  little 
town,  located  near  the  bank  of  the  great  Mis- 
souri, and  among  the  bluffs  that  rise  mountain 
high.  It  received  its  name  from  the  council 
held  there  in  the  year  1804  by  Lewis  and  Clark, 
United  States  explorers,  to  decide  upon  the  best 
method  of  avoiding  the  Indian  dangers.  Hav- 
ing wended  our  way  down  to  the  river-side,  we 
stood  upon  the  bank  of  the  muddiest  stream  that 
washes  the  soil  of  the  Union.  There  being  no 
wagon-bridge  here,  we  were  obliged  to  take  pas- 
sage to  the  opposite  bank  upon  the  train  and 
over  the  great  railroad  bridge,  which  the  Indian 
chief  said  looked  like  a  "much  big  spider-web." 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  41 


CHAPTER     II. 

Omaha — Homestead  Land — Coming  Onto  the  Plains — Cold 
Winds— Platte  Valley— Republican  Forks — Fort  Wallace 
— Big  Sandy— Old  Battle-Ground—Arkansas  Valley- 
Irrigation  Farming. 

The  great  emigrant  land  of  which  we  had 
heard  so  much  had  at  last  been  reached,  and  the 
din  from  the  streets  of  the  great  western  exchange 
was  borne  to  our  ears  upon  the  evening  breeze. 
Omaha  is  built  upon  the  side  of  a  large  hill,  and 
is  quite  a  pretty  place;  and  being  the  wholesale 
city  for  many  miles  of  the  surrounding  country, 
business  is  lively,  and  the  people  say  hard  times 
never  reach  them.  We  could  but  wonder,  as  we 
gazed  upon  these  two  cities,  perched  as  they  are 
upon  hill-sides  upon  opposite  sides  of  the  river, 
and  covering  the  surface  which  was  so  lately  the 
rich  pasture-land  of  the  wild  prairie  animal. 
Truly,  said  we  to  ourselves,  there  must  be  some 
virtue  in  the  surrounding  country  which  sup- 
ports these  rapidly-growing  cities. 

Eager  to  learn  the  true  merits  of  the  homestead 
land,  we  pushed  boldly  into  the  country,  with 


42 


eyes  keen  to  see  the  advantages  and  disadvan- 
tages of  the  great,  historical,  poor  man's  home. 
Proceeding  but  a  few  miles  from  the  river-banks 
we  opened  into  the  land  of  promise.  Here  lay  a 
broad,  /rolling,  and  fertile  prairie,  all  covered 
with  richest  vegetation  and  well  watered  in  all 
directions.  Timber  had  entirely  disappeared, 
except  the  pretty  little  cotton-woods  which  gilded 
the  banks  of  most  all  the  little  streams.  Many 
homesteads  have  been  taken  up  here,  and  the 
little  sod-houses  which  dot  the  country  in  all 
directions  mark  the  abodes  of  the  settlers. 
Timber  being  very  dear,  the  country  is  not  in- 
cumbered  with  fences,  and  the  dark,  rich  surface 
being  as  beautiful  as  any  the  sun  ever  shone 
upon,  the  scene,  upon  the  whole,  was  truly  im- 
pressive. A  great  deal  of  the  sod  has  been 
broken,  and  the  rich,  golden  grain  that  waves 
in  the  western  wind  speaks  the  great  strength 
of  the  soil.  All  the  latest  improved  farming 
implements  are  used  here,  and  tilling  and  sow- 
ing those  large,  clear  fields  is  perfectly  delight- 
ful. Lands  along  the  railroads  are  being  rap- 
idly improved,  and  ere  long  the  eastern  and 
southern  parts  of  Kansas  and  eastern  Nebraska 
will  find  a  place  upon  the  first  pages  of  the  ag- 
ricultural history  of  America. 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  43 

Many  poor  families  from  the  overthronged  East 
have  found  themselves  fine  homes  here,  and 
from  the  rapid  growth  of  the  country  they  are 
promised  great  wealth.  The  eastern  part  of 
Kansas  being  of  the  same  nature  as  that  just 
described,  we  simply  remark  that  the  voice  of 
the  pen  is  too  feeble  to  do  justice  to  so  beautiful 
a  country. 

Kansas  and  Nebraska  are  included  in  what 
Fremont  termed  the  "Great  American  Desert," 
in  the  year  1842  ;  and  the  settlers  say  that  even 
as  late  as  ten  years  ago  places  that  are  now  pro- 
ductive were  barren  and  sandy.  It  appears  that 
the  more  farming  there  is  done  there  the  greater 
the  dampness  becomes ;  and  they  now  have 
plenty  of  rain  where  everything  used  to  parch.. 
Some  think  the  whole  western  plains  will  at 
some  day  become  productive ;  but  more  of  that 
hereafter. 

Game  is  quite  abundant  here,  and  the  prairie- 
chickens  often  fly  up  in  such  great  flocks  that 
the  hum  of  their  wings  sounds  like  thunder. 
They  fly  very  swiftly.  Here  the  first  jack  rabbit 
showed  himself  to  us,  and  upon  our  giving  chase 
we  were  greatly  surprised  at  his  sudden  disap- 
pearance with  only  a  light  streak  through  the 


44 


air  to  mark  the  course  he  had  taken.  They  are 
about  four  times  as  large  as  the  cotton-tails,  and 
have  ears  about  five  inches  long.  We  had  a 
great  deal  of  sport  at  hunting,  and  spent  many 
days  wandering  up  and  down  this  beautiful 
^country,  visiting  the  settlers  in  their  humble 
homes,  and  conversing  with  them  of  olden  times 
and  their  experiences  in  the  settling  of  a  new 
•country.  They  were  very  hospitable,  and  though 
a  little  sod-house  and  stable,  with  grass  grow- 
ing green  upon  every  part  but  the  doors  and 
windows,  sitting  out  alone  upon  the  wide 
prairie,  without  a  fence  arid  often  without  a  tree 
to  shelter  them  from  the  broiling  summer's  sun, 
usually  constitute  their  homes,  they  are  never- 
theless happy,  and  say  that  though  their  ac- 
commodations and  conveniences  are  very  lim- 
ited, and  they  do  not  get  a  high  price  for  their 
produce,  their  crops  are  usually  abundant,  and 
they  can  live  oft' of  this  until  things  can  develop. 
It  has  been  discovered  by  trial  that  timber  grows 
very  rapidly,  and  whole  acres  of  little  wal- 
nut and  cotton-wood  sprouts  lately  planted 
promise  that  at  some  time  in  the  future  there 
will  be  some  pretty  forests  here.  When  this  is 
the  case,  the  birds  will  immigrate  here,  the  in- 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  45 


sect  tribe — such  a  pest  to  the  country — will  dimin- 
ish, and  the  settlers  will  sit  in  their  doors  in  the 
thick,  beautiful  shade,  and  listen  to  the  songs 
that  are  sung  in  the  green  foliage.  As  it  is,  the 
flies  are  very  troublesome  through  the  day,  and 
at  night  you  are  compelled  to  build  a  smudge 
and  sit  in  the  smoke  to  keep  the  mosquitoes 
from  carrying  you  off. 

Thinking  that  perhaps  this  part  has  been 
sufficiently  described,  I  will  refer  the  reader  to 
the  letters  which  close  this  work  for  unmentioned 
particulars,  and  again  turn  our  faces  toward  the 
west.  We  had  not  traveled  many  days,  how- 
ever, until  settlements  had  dwindled  to  lonely 
domicils  upon  the  wide  prairie ;  the  dark,  rich 
soil  began  to  fade  to  a  lighter  and  more  sandy, 
and  great  herds  of  cattle  tramped  the  unbroken 
surface.  A  few  weeks  more  and  all  vegetation 
had  faded  away,  and  we  were  upon  the  Fremont 
desert.  The  grass,  instead  of  being  long,  slen- 
der prairie-grass,  was  short,  thickly-set  buffalo- 
grass.  The  soil  was  dry  and  scarcely  ever  knew 
a  rain;  and  then  it  was  that  we  found  ourselves 
upon  the  great  western  plains.  The  surface  is 
usually  smooth,  and  perfectly  delightful  to  travel 
over,  and  we  could  sometimes  see  for  many  miles 


46  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

around  us.  But  the  danger  of  traveling  in  this 
dry,  barren  wilderness,  where  scarcely  any  one 
lives,  and  of  which  we  had  been  warned,  we  now 
began  to  realize.  True,  there  were  old,  deeply- 
worn  emigrant  roads,  one  via  Kansas  City,  and 
one  via  Omaha  and  Cheyenne,  which  we  could 
have  traveled  with  comparatively  little  danger 
or  difficulty ;  but  it  was  our  purpose  to  see  and 
experience  something  new,  and  accordingly  we 
chose  the  wild  prairie.  We  had  purchased  a  bar- 
rel at  Lincoln,  Nebraska,  which  we  always  filled 
when  leaving  water,  and  with  no  guide  but  the 
compass  we  boldly  sped  onward,  not  knowing 
what  each  day  would  bring  torth.  The  scene, 
however,  was  materially  the  same — one  broad, 
open  plain,  stretching  out  like  an  ocean  as  far  as 
the  eye  could  reach.  Our  camp  at  night  was 
truly  a  lonely  one,  with  no  company  but  the 
shy  antelope  that  sniffed  the  air  at  a  distance, 
and  nothing  to  break  the  deep,  death-like  still- 
ness that  reigned  around  us  but  the  howl  of  the 
grey  wolf,  whose  keen  eye  was  upon  our  every 
move.  Stretching  ourselves  upon  a  blanket, 
with  nothing  but  the  starry  heavens  above  us, 
we  lay  dreaming  of  killing  buffaloes,  scalping 
Sitting  Bull,  and  other  adventures  too  numerous 
to  mention* 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  47 

We  had  often  heard  of  the  cold  winds  and 
sudden  changes  in  the  atmosphere  that  all  the 
western  country  was  subject  to,  hut  our  first  ex- 
perience on  this  score  was  while  traveling  in 
western  Nebraska,  on  the  seventh  day  of  Sep- 
tember. The  morn  was  a  bright  and  glorious 
one,  and  as  we  steered  our  way  over  the  dry 
desert  we  remarked  that  a  more  beautiful  day 
we  had  never  seen.  But  about  three  o'clock  the 
atmosphere  began  to  change  and  the  wind  to 
blow  a  hurricane.  In  the  course  of  an  hour  the 
soft,  warm  wind  had  changed  to  a  howling, 
wintry  storm,  and  we  were  compelled  to  un- 
hitch and  picket  our  horses,  and  make  our  bed 
in  the  wagon  as  a  retreat  from  the  piercing 
winds  which  almost  lifted  us  from  the  ground. 
It  was  almost  impossible  to  keep  warm  with  our 
light  covering,  and  only  after  we  had  torn  up 
every  spare  cloth  we  had  to  stop  the  cracks  in 
the  wagon-bed,  we  succeeded  in  rendering  our- 
selves tolerably  comfortable.  A  peep  at  the 
horses  showed  their  shivering,  and  the  big 
blood-hound  under  the  wagon  lending  his  tones 
the  winds  that  hurried  by,  spoke  the  necessity 
of  sharing  our  comfort  with  him.  This  he 
gladly  accepted,  and  without  anything  to  eat  or 


: 


48 


drink  we  lay  covered  over  head  and  ears  until 
the  next  day  at  noon.  We  then  stepped  from 
our  asylum  to  hear  the  last  roar  of  the  hurricane 
dying  away  in  the  distance,  and  warm  ourselves 
in  the  sun  which  had  burst  its  stormy  veil. 
This  little  fast  had  keened  our  appetites,  and  we 
eat  our  dinners  with  a  relish.  After  turning 
our  horses  to  graze  for  awhile,  and  watering 
them  from  the  barrel,  we  resumed  our  journey 
over  the  dry  desert,  and  at  length  reached  the 
valley  of  the  Platte.  This  valley  is  wide  and 
level,  and  is  carpeted  with  the  richest  pasture. 
With  its  cool,  purple  waters  rolling  through  the 
thick  shade  of  the  little  branching  cotton-wood 
trees,  piercing  the  dry,  barren  plain,  bereft  of 
bush  or  weed,  it  appears  a  perfect  paradise. 
Great  herds  of  cattle  feed  upon  the  green  grass, 
and  every  ten  or  fifteen  miles  there  is  a  little 
pole-shanty  and  picket  corral  built  upon  the 
river-side  among  the  trees ;  and  here  stay  the 
cow-men,  one  at  a  place,  to  watch  over  the  cat- 
tle. They  make  a  trip  after  provisions  once  a 
year,  and  of  course  do  their  own  cooking.  They 
always  have  the  best  of  meat ;  and  this,  with  bis- 
cuits, is  about  all  they  eat.  It  is  very  often  that 
they  do  not  see  a  man  for  several  months ;  and, 


k" 

; 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  49 

strange  to  say,  they  are  used  to  that  way  of  living 
and  enjoy  themselves  better  than  many  who  live 
in  a  land  of  luxuries,  surrounded  by  mankind, 
where  the  din  of  business  is  noisy  and  loud. 
They  have  five  and  six  ponies  apiece,  and  their 
buffalo  and  antelope  chases  over  the  river-hills 
are  as  pleasant  and  exciting  to  them  as  though 
viewed  by  thousands  of  people.  We  had  many 
pleasant  chats  with  them,  and  many  a  feast  did 

e  have  together. 

1  had  seen  many  heavy  storms,  but  I  assure 
you  I  thought  we  had  entered  the  store-house  ot 
thunder-storms  when  we  came  into  this  valley ; 
for  such  terrible  rumbling  and  glaring  I  had 
never  heard  nor  seen.  I  tell  you,  when  the 
thunder  bursts  forth  with  an  earthquake  shock 
and  reverberates  among  the  river-hills,  and  the 
lightning  begins  to  play  upon  the  cattle's  horns, 
these  old  hunters  and  herders,  who  have  been 
hardened  in  the  wilds  for  many  years  and  who 
have  seen  the  bloodiest  of  frontier  life,  come  to 
their  knees. 

Leaving  this  valley  we  steered  south-west  and 
struck  the  valley  of  the  Republican,  at  the  forks 
of  the  river,  one  beautiful  evening  just  as  the 
sun  was  tinging  with  gold  the  western  sky. 


50  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

Who  can  imagine  the  beauty  of  this  valley, — as 
it  appeared  to  us,— all  decked  with  little  branch- 
ing cotton-wood  trees  and  carpeted  with  velvet 
green,  winding  its  way  through  the  midst  of  the 
broad  and  silent  wilderness.  The  great  herds 
of  cattle  reclining  beneath  the  trees,  the  voices 
of  the  little  calves  borne  to  our  ears  upon  the 
evening  zephyrs,  and  the  rude  shanty  upon  the 
bank  of  the  stream,  all  spoke  of  comfort  and 
content,  and  we  could  not  help  recognizing  this 
as  a  happy  home,  though  far  in  the  western 
wilds.  The  lone  man  who  lived  there  appeared 
to  be  glad  to  see  us,  and  we  were  not  a  little 
delighted  to  converse  with  one  who  had  lived 
with  his  herds  for  many  years  upon  the  frontier. 
He  told  us  how  comfortably  he  could  live  there 
and  how  rapid  were  his  gains  with  so  little  out- 
lay. He  told  us  that  we  could  find  cow-ranches 
upon  almost  every  stream  in  the  West,  and  ex- 
plained to  us  the  way  the  business  was  carried 
on.  Upon  his  telling  us  there  were  many  buffa- 
loes a  few  days'  journey  to  the  north-west, 
among  the  sand-hills,  we  became  very  impatient 
and  could  hardly  wait  for  the  morning  to  start 
upon  a  buffalo  expedition.  When  we  were 
ready  to  start,  he  said  we  should  be  a  little 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  51 

careful,  for  the  Cheyennes  had  broken  from  the 
agency,  and  while  on  the  war-path  were  scalp- 
ing hunters  and  cattle-men  in  all  directions. 
Johnny  having  stopped  for  a  home  in  eastern 
Nebraska,  we  were  but  two  in  number,  but — in 
our  estimation — a  more  precious  two  never  died 
in  any  country.  There  was  as  much  danger 
upon  one  side  as  upon  the  other,  however,  and 
we  were  going  for  the  buffaloes,  Indians  or  no 
Indians.  It  was  part  of  our  mission  to  kill 
Sitting  Bull  and  Spotted  Tail,  and  this  might 
prove  to  be  a  favorable  opportunity. 

We  had  not  left  the  valley  far  when  we  came 
among  the  great  sand-hills,  which  grew  higher 
and  softer  until  they  were  almost  untraversable. 
Keeping  in  the  vicinity  of  a  small  stream  called 
Rock  Creek,  which  courses  its  way  among  the 
bluffs,  we  traveled  several  days,  keenly  watching 
for  anything  that  looked  like  meat.  We  never 
became  careless,  however,  and  the  fire  was 
always  deadened  before  dark,  while  the  wagon 
was  placed  upon  some  high  spot  for  the  night, 
in  order  to  avoid  the  treachery  that  might  be 
lurking  behind  the  hills. 

Breaking  our  way  through  the  soft,  deep  sand, 
we  were  compelled  to  travel  very  slowly.  Sight- 


52  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

ing  a  single  buffalo,  upon  one  occasion,  we  fully 
expected  to  find  a  great  herd  behind  every  hill. 
That  was  the  only  one,  however,  that  we  got  a 
glimpse  of;  and  not  having  killed  even  a  rabbit 
since  we  left  the  river,  and  our  horses  becoming 
very  much  worried,  we  concluded  to  turn  back. 
The  many  skeletons  that  were  scattered  over  the 
face  of  the  country  showed  that  the  soft  surface 
was  not  always  trackless,  and  that  we  were  not  the 
first  hunters  who  had  plowed  the  sands  of  that 
region.  However,  the  great  herds  that  we  had 
expected  to  find  had  sought  another  range,  and 
not  even  a  wolf  howled  in  the  deep  silence. 
We  could  but  feel  a  little  discouraged  at  so 
great  a  disappointment;  and  as  we  journeyed 
back  toward  the  river,  each  mile  was  an  effort. 

We  reached  the  river  again  after  a  circuit  in 
the  sand-hills  of  just  fourteen  days;  and  during 
this  time  we  had  eaten  nothing  but  flap -jacks. 
It  is  needless  to  say  that  we  were  hungry  for 
meaty  and  there  being  many  cattle  in  the  valley, 
we  imagined  the  little  calves  to  be  buffaloes;  and 
it  was  not  long  after  sight,  nor  with  much  cere- 
mony, that  we  were  eating  something  that  had 
not  stuck  in  our  teeth  for  two  long  weeks. 

After  learning  from  an  old  hunter,  whom  we 
met  on  the  prairie,  that  buffaloes  journeyed 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  53 

north  in  the  spring  and  south  in  the  fall,  we 
determined  to  follow  them  if  they  went  to  South 
America. 

In  an  unsettled  country  there  are,  of  course, 
no  bridges  over  the  streams  and  chasms,  and 
not  many  good  crossings.  So,  choosing  what 
we  thought  to  be  a  good  place  to  cross,  we 
splashed  into  the  waters  of  the  Republican. 
The  stream  is  about  one  hundred  yards  wide, 
and  in  some  places  is  real  deep.  This  was  our 
first  experience  in  quicksand;  and  we  managed 
to  get  to  about  the  middle  of  the  stream,  when, 
in  about  two  feet  of  water,  the  wagon  dropped 
to  the  axle  in  the  sand.  The  longer  it  stood  the 
deeper  it  sunk,  until  there  was  not  much  wagon 
above  the  water.  Being  lightly  loaded  we 
jumped  into  the  water,  and  after  lifting  the 
wheels  to  let  the  sand  wash  under  them,  John 
lifted  while  I  tried  to  start  the  team.  But  the 
wind  was  blowing  and  the  water  waving,  and 
the  horses  being  in  about  as  deeply  as  the 
wagon,  it  was  no  go,  and  we  were  the  worst 
stuck  outfit  that  river  ever  knew.  This  was  the 
first  time  that  we  had  ever  yielded  that  hell  was 
upon  earth;  and  I  will  bet  that  if  old  Father 
Moses  and  his  followers  had  been  stack  in  the 


quicksand  when  crossing  the  channel  of  the  Ked 
Sea,  and  had  felt  as  we  did  at  that  time,  Pha- 
raoh and  all  his  hosts  would  have  been  nothing 
to  whip.  However,  after  struggling  for  some 
time  the  horses  became  as  impatient  as  our- 
selves, and  we  began  to  yell  desperately.  The 
water  began  to  splash.  The  cattle  of  the  vicin- 
ity becoming  excited,  curled  their  tails  up  over 
their  backs  and  began  to  run  and  bawl.  The 
wagon  began  to  move,  and  we  were  soon  safely 
landed  on  the  other  side.  Not  taking  the  Irish- 
man's advice,  we  had  omitted  laughing  before 
we  started  in,  and  being  now  too  much  fatigued 
we  concluded  that  there  was  no  fun  about  the 
affair,  and  only  looked  back  to  think  what  a  job 
to  cross  a  Republican  and  to  sympathize  for  one 
moment  with  the  poor  Democrats. 

It  had  been  some  time  since  we  had  been 
where  we  could  buy  anything,  and  our  supplies 
running  short,  we  steered  south  for  Fort  Wal- 
lace, Kansas.  This  was  several  days'  travel — and 
lonely  ones  they  were  to  us,  too,  seeing  but  two 
men  until  we  arrived  within  a  few  miles  of  the 
fort.  We  found  most  of  the  ranchmen  of  the 
vicinity  centered  there  for  protection  from  the 
savages,  who  had  been  scalping  within  sight  of 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  55 


the  government  fort.  We  were  heartily  "con- 
gratulated upon  our  safe  arrival  through  the 
very  heart  of  dangers;  but  we  had  been  told 
this  too  often  to  appreciate  it,  and  partly  con- 
cluded that  it  was  not  alone  lack  and  chance  that 
took  us  through,  but  that  there  must  be  some- 
thing bold  or  daring  in  our  appearance. 

How  like  home  it  appeared  to  us  when  we 
saw  the  blue  smoke  curling  from  the  chimneys, 
the  children  playing  around  their  homes,  and 
heard  the  shrill  whistle  of  the  engine  which 
pierced  the  deep  silence  of  the  open  plain. 

This  little  town  is  comparatively  an  insignifi- 
cant place  of  fifteen  or  twenty  houses,  and  is 
situated  in  the  midst  of  a  dry  and  barren  prairie, 
far  from  the  beauties  of  civilization  and  cultiva- 
tion. Nevertheless,  here  were  houses  whose 
walls  echoed  the  cheerful  din  of  several  families. 
Domestic  animals  were  feeding  in  the  vicinity, 
and  here  were  the  United  States  wagons,  passing 
back  and  forth  to  the  fort  which  stood  in  the 
distance.  All  this  spoke  home  and  comfort  to 
us  ;  and  it  is  needless  to  say  that  after  a  journey 
of  many  days  in  the  solitude  of  the  wilderness, 
during  which  time  we  saw  but  few  persons  and 
scarcely  a  trace  of  human  mechanism,  we  were 


56 


deeply  impressed  and  let  our  reflections  carry  us 
back  to  the  land  from  whence  we  came.  After 
enjoying  the  novelty  of  the  place,  which  is  but 
a  star  in  the  prairie-world  and  connected  with 
civilization  by  naught  but  the  iron  rail,  we  pre- 
pared for  further  adventure. 

There  is  not  the  least  plant  cultivated  here, 
and  the  most  exorbitant  prices  were  charged  us 
for  our  little  necessaries.  I  recollect  I  wanted 
to  buy  a  funnel  here  to  use  with  our  water-bar- 
rel. I  had  never  bought  a  funnel,  but  I  sup- 
posed a  small  one  would  cost  about  twenty-five 
cents.  So  I  picked  out  one  to  suit  me  and  threw 
down  fifty  cents  to  the  store-keeper,  and  looked 
for  change.  Now,  what  do  you  think?  Why, 
he  stood  there  looking  at  me  until  I  asked 
him  what  he  wanted.  "  I  want  the  rest  of 
the  price  of  that  funnel."  "Why,  what  is 
the  price  of  it?"  said  I.  "Six  bits;  the  usual 
price  is  a  dollar,"  said  he.  I  felt  a  little  sur- 
prised at  being  asked  seventy-five  cents  for  a 
little  funnel;  so  E  said  to  him,  "Is  it  silver?" 
"No."  "  Is  there  any  virtue  in  it  that  would  be 
conveyed  to  the  water  upon  running  through 
it?"  "No."  "Well,  then,  is  it  a  legacy  from 
your  grandmother?  or  what  the  thunder  makes 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  57 

it  so  valuable?"  said  I,  appearing  somewhat 
curious.  "  Well,"  said  he,  "  I  will  give  you  five 
minutes  to  settle  up."  "Well,"  said  I,  "this  is 
too  valuable  a  thing  to  take  out  on  the  prairie 
and  run  the  risk  of  its  being  stolen,  so  I  will 
give  you  just  five  minutes  to  hand  over  that 
half  dollar."  He  said  I  had  bought  the  funnel 
and  must  pay  for  it.  At  this  I  grabbed  four 
funnels,  and  told  him  that  I  considered  I  was  in 
hell  anyhow,  and  if  he  thought  he  could  better 
or  worse  my  condition  any  to  just  draw  his 
brakes ;  and  we  started  for  the  door.  He  came 
running  after  us  and  said  he  would  let  us  have 
the  funnel  for  fifty  cents.  We  told  him  we  did 
not  need  any  funnels.  "Well,"  said  he,  "here's 
jour  half  dollar."  "Well,"  said  I,  "you  owe 
me  more  than  that."  "  Why,  how  can  that  be?" 
said  he.  "Why,"  said  I,  "if  everything  else  is 
worth  so  much,  money  is  worth  something  too, 
and  that  half  dollar  has  drawn  twenty-five  cents 
interest."  "  Well,"  said  he,  "  this  is  hell ! "  We 
told  him  that  was  what  we  took  it  for,  and- went 
on.  He  came  running  into  the  prairie  and  paid 
us  the  fifty  cents,  with  interest,  and  took  his 
funnels.  If  we  could  have  got  him  a  little 
farther  from  the  fort  we  would  have  charged 


58 


him  compound  interest  and  all  the  funnels;  but 
under  the  circumstances  we  concluded  to  settle 
reasonably.  We  then  picked  up  an  old  oyster- 
can  and  set  it  over  the  hole  in  the  barrel,  and 
with  a  picket-pin  and  the  ax  we  drove  a  hole 
through  the  bottom  of  the  can,  and  then  had  a 
funnel  and  a  quarter  for  our  trouble. 

We  now  steered  for  Colorado,  due  west. 
Stopping  at  the  Smoky  Hill  Fork  to  fill  our  bar- 
rel, we  were  told  by  a  ranchman  that  the  next 
water  in  that  direction  was  the  Barrel  Springs, — 
so  called  from  the  barrels  sunk  there  by  hunters 
years  ago, — thirty-five  miles  distant.  We  had 
not  had  any  trouble  about  water  yet,  .and  did  not 
think  it  necessary  to  ask  many  questions.  So 
we  marched  as  true  to  the  direction  pointed  out 
to  us  as  possible,  and  wended  our  way  slowly 
along,  killing  jack-rabbits  and  antelopes  for 
supplies,  and  conversing  upon  such  subjects  as 
would  best  pass  away  the  time.  Our  barrel 
held  seven  bucketfuls  of  water,  and  the  drive 
being  but  thirty -five  miles,  we  were  in  no  hurry 
and  not  as  saving  with  the  water  as  we  might 
have  been. 

The  first  night  out  was  a  pleasant  camp,  and 
a  little  chase  afforded  us  great  sport.  Directly 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  59 

after  striking  camp  upon  a  spot  whence  we 
could  see  several  miles  in  any  direction,  so  level 
was  the  surrounding  country.  A  deer  was- 
seen  watching  us  in  the  distance.  "Ah,"  said 
John,  "now  for  a  race."  So,  with  carbine  in 
hand,  he  mounted  the  gray  mare ;  and  the  deer 
was  soon  seen  bounding  away  with  head  erect, 
and  John  in  close  pursuit.  Luckily  for  me,  the 
chase  was  around  camp;  and  the  fun  of  viewing 
that  race  was  all  to  myself.  The  deer  at  first  ap- 
peared to  think  it  all  sport ;  but  seeing  the  gray 
mare  gaining  upon  him,  and  John's  long  hair 
streaming  in  the  wind  while  hurling  lead  from 
the  old  carbine,  he  appeared  to  realize  his  situa- 
tion, and  started  off  as  if  in  a  race  for  life,  only 
touching  the  high  places.  John  slowly  returned 
from  the  chase,  and  riding  into  camp  asked 
me  if  we  needed  any  meat.  "If  we  do,"  said  he,, 
"  I  can  get  that  deer  very  easily."  "  Oh,"  said 
I,  "  that  meat  is  like  the  funnel,  it  is  too  dear 
entirely.  I  suppose  we  can  do  without  it." 

The  next  morning,  after  taking  our  breakfast, 
we  moved  on,  expecting  to  reach  the  Barrel 
Springs  about  noon,  having  but  one  bucket  of 
water  left.  Noon  came,  and  no  water  was  left  in 
the  barrel ;  and  the  springs  were  not  yet  in  sight.. 


60  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

Twilight  began  to  curtain  the  light  of  day,  and 
our  suspicions  were  aroused  lest  we  had  passed 
the  looked-for  spot.  The  weather  was  warm, 
the  air  dry,  and  our  horses  that  night  looked  in 
vain  at  the  empty  barrel  that  lay  drying  in  its 
hoops,  and  from  which  they  had  quenched  their 
thirst  so  often.  Our  sleep  that  night  was  haunt- 
ed with  the  thought  of  our  probably  serious  con- 
dition; and  the  next  day  at  early  dawn,  without 
breakfast,  we  hastened  in  the  prescribed  direc- 
tion, knowing  that  if  we  had  passed  the  springs, 
which  was  the  most  probable,  it  might  be  many 
miles  before  we  could  again  find  the  cooling  fluid 
so  essential  to  life.  To  turn  back  to  find  it  was 
equally  as  uncertain,  so  wre  determined  to  go 
forward.  The  plain  grew  very  sandy,  and  the 
sun,  without  one  cloud  to  veil  its  brightness, 
darted  its  torrid  rays  upon  us  with  mighty 
power.  Each  hour  of  that  long  day  was  an 
.anxious  year,  and  greater  pains  than  we  took  at 
every  little  green  spot  and  hollow  to  find  water 
by  digging  deep  into  the  soil  could  not  be  taken 
by  any  one  searching  for  a  morsel  upon  which 
hung  the  last  hope  of  mortal  life.  Our  horses, 
too,  by  their  tardy  gait,  showed  their  great 
weariness ;  and  the  whole  was  truly  a  thirsty 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  61 

outfit.      Night  came  and  no  water.     That  night 
there  was  not  one  cloud  in  the  sky ;  but  the  moon 
did  not  seem  bright  to  our  eyes,  and  the  stars 
did  not  seem  to  twinkle.     We  were  alone  in  the 
desert,  deserted  by  all  animation,  and  without 
one  single  thing  to  whisper  to  us  a  word  of  en- 
couragement.     To    see    those    poor    perishing 
horses  licking  that  empty  barrel,  and  then  gaze 
at  us  with  their  ears  dropped  to  the  side  of  their 
heads,  as  if  to  say,  "  We  are  dying  of  thirst," 
was  enough  to  sadden  any  human,  and  to  call  up 
before  our  minds  the  terrible  accounts  of  which 
we  had  read  of  whole  outfits  of  men,  women, 
and  little  children,   whose  bones    were    found 
withering    upon  the  burning  sands.      0   God ! 
what  must  be  the  agony  of  a  parent  whose  little 
infants   are    fast    gathering    in    their    innocent 
countenances  the  picture  of  death,  and  without 
one  drop  of  water  to  give  them  in  their  last  ap- 
peal !     Softly  the  night  melted  into  day,  and  the 
morn  brought  no  relief.     But  without  showing 
one  spark  of  discouragement,  we  pushed  on  with 
parched  lips.    About  noon  one  of  the  horses  be- 
came  so  weak  that  he   could  do  his  part  no 
longer.     We  unhitched  him  and  put  the  other 
one  at  the  end  of  the  tongue ;  and  while  I  led  the 


62  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

fore  horse,  John  whipped  the  hind  one  along, 
followed  by  the  big  blood-hound  with  his  great 
red  tongue  lolling  from  his  mouth.  I  imagine 
many  of  the  most  sorrowful  sights  are  only  seen 
by  their  unfortunate  presenters.  We  would 
have  given  five  dollars  for  a  cup  of  water  as  free- 
ly as  we  ever  gave  five  cents  for  a  glass  of  soda. 
Toward  evening  John  became  so  weak  that  he 
was  obliged  to  ride,  and  I  could  see  that  his 
heart  had  sunk  far  into  his  bosom!  I  wore  just 
as  brisk  an  appearance  as  the  circumstances 
would  permit  of,  and  trudged  along  leading  the 
gray  mare  and  whistling  as  much  comfort  to  my 
perishing  comrade  as  could  be  done  with  swelled 
lips.  I  will  never  forget  that  effort!  I  never 
could  whistle  a  single  tune  in  God's  world,  and  I 
imagine  that  tune  I  got  off  then  was  rather  kill- 
ing John  than  amusing  him.  Nevertheless,  it 
was  my  best. 

About  nine  o'clock  we  made  another  dry  camp, 
The  country  had  grown  rough,  showing  signs  of 
water;  and  seeing  a  cow-track  by  the  bright  light 
of  the  moon,  we  were  assured  that  water  was 
near.  But  we  were  tired;  and  the  first  pangs  of 
thirst  having  somewhat  subsided,  we  concluded 
to  wait  for  the  morn.  That  night  John  did  a 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  63 


great  deal  of  dreaming,  and  said  so  many  funny 
things  that  I  am  sure  if  there  had  been  a  short- 
hand reporter  there  he  could  have  written  an 
interesting  volume,  and  might  have  had  love- 
letters  that  would  have  been  models  for  the  most 
affectionate  writers.  In  the  morning  I  arose 
early  and  mounted  the  gray  mare  that  had  been 
so  gallant,  and  then  over  the  hills  for  water.  I 
followed  the  cow-track  that  I  had  seen  in  the 
evening;  and  the  tracks  became  more  and  more 
numerous,  until  deep  paths  were  seen  winding 
among  the  hills.  After  traveling  about  four 
miles  from  camp  I  came  upon  an  elevated  spot, 
whence  I  viewed  such  beauties  that  the  occasion 
shall  never  be  forgotten,  though  time  shall  find 
me  aged  and  gray,  and  my  faithful  companion 
far  away.  There  in  front  of  me,  and  at  my  feet, 
lay  a  most  beautiful  valley,  carpeted  with  richest 
green,  and  tenderly  holding  upon  its  bosom  little 
pools  of  the  liquid  for  which  we  had  so  long 
searched.  The  little  sprouting  cotton-wood 
trees  that  decked  the  slopes  of  that  treasured 
spot  seemed  to  call  out  to  us  to  come  arid  see 
the  beauties  so  rarely  seen  by  aught  else  but  the 
wild  herds  that  trampled  beneath  their  green 
foliage.  "Without  the  least  ceremony,  a  gray 


64  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

mare  and  thirsty  rider  might  have  been  seen 
dashing  down  the  hill-side  toward  the  fountain 
of  life.  The  cattle  that  were  standing  in  the 
water  lashing  the  flies,  with  great  astonishment 
at  the  sight  of  their  new  visitors,  readily  yielded 
their  rights  to  us,  and  in  we  went. 

Oh  give  me  not  a  golden  cup, 

My  parching  lips  to  cool ; 
But,  like  the  wild  beast,  I  will  sip 

The  water  from  the  pool. 

As  soon  as  we  had  all  we  wished  we  pushed 
off  with  all  speed  for  camp.  There,  among  the 
barren  hills,  lay  the  bay  horse  stretched  out 
upon  the  sand,  and  apparently  resigned  to  his 
fate,  while  John  was  sitting  under  the  wagon, 
viewing  the  surroundings  as  though  wishing  the 
power  to  bring  water  from  the  barren  bluffs. 
Though  I  did  not  bring  water  from  the  rocks,  I 
brought  it  in  a  tin  bucket ;  and  it  was  quite 
natural  that  I  should  imagine  myself  the  Moses 
of  old,  watering  the  perishing  in  the  midst  of  the 
desert.  After  drinking  ot  the  water  John  was 
greatly  refreshed,  and  there  was  enough  left  to 
take  the  dimness  from  the  eyes  of  the  perishing 
horse.  We  now  prepared  to  move  down  to  the 
water.  It  was  only  with  great  difficulty  that  we 


THROUGH  THE    WEST.  65 

succeeded  in  getting  our  fainting  horse  to  the 
valley ;  and  it  was  an  affecting  scene  when  the 
pool  met  his  eye  to  see  him  prick  up  his  ears 
and  stagger  into  the  water.  After  we  were  all 
refreshed,  we  turned  the  horses  to  graze,  and  set 
about  getting  something  to  eat.  We  had  often 
been  warned  of  the  great  peril  of  traveling  over 
the  unmarked  prairie  without  a  guide,  and  had 
read  of  many  outfits  dying  of  thirst,  but  this 
was  our  first  experience.  We  had  come  from  a 
land  of  plenty,  and  relished  the  many  knick- 
knacks  and  rarities  of  a  civilized  country;  but  the 
most  pleasant  draught  we  had  ever  taken  in  our 
lives,  was  that  from  the  beautiful  little  lake  in  the 
green  valley  of  Big  Sand  Creek.  Some  may 
relish  liquors,  while  others  will  choose  milder 
and  more  delicate  drinks ;  but  when  your  sys- 
tem is  racked  with  a  thirsty  fever,  and  the  blood 
is  drying  in  your  veins,  then  is  naught  half  so 
delicious  as  the  unadulterated  fluid  that  flows  so 
freely  from  the  fountain  of  nature.  There  were 
many  antelopes  here;  and  we  camped  for  several 
days  in  this  beautiful  valley,  recruiting  our 
weary  team  upon  the  rich  pasture,  and  killing 
antelopes  and  drying  their  meat. 


66  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

One  clear  evening,  while  sitting  in  our  lonely 
camp  watching  the  sun  as  it  sunk  low  in  the  far 
horison,  we  saw  an  object  moving  in  the  dim 
distance.  Quickly  the  glass  was  sighted  and  the 
focus  told  the  person  of  a  man  on  horseback 
moving  toward  us.  We  were  overjoyed  at  this 
sight,  and  were  glad  to  meet  one  who  could  tell 
us  where  we  were  and  explain  the  surrounding. 
We  received  him  most  cordially,  and  after  feast- 
ing him  to  the  best  we  had,  we  all  felt  refreshed 
;and  seated  ourselves  for  a  chat.  He  told  us  that 
we  were  upon  the  Big  Sandy,  forty  miles  above 
the  Arkansas  River,  into  which  it  flows,  and 
that  we  would  find  cow-ranches  all  the  way 
down.  He  said  he  lived  at  the  mouth  of  the 
creek,  and  gave  us  the  history  of  the  country 
through  the  many  years  that  he  had  been  breath- 
ing pure  western  air.  New-comers  on  the  plains 
are  called  tender  feet;  and  having  been  called 
that  before,  we  concluded  to  take  advantage  of 
this  occasion  and  be  as  big  an  Indian-killing 
outfit  as  any  he  could  tell  of,  though  of  course 
we  were  strangers  in  that  part  of  the  country. 
After  he  had  narrated  some  interesting  events, 
we  began  telling  some  of  our  experiences,  and 
among  other  things  incidentally  mentioned  our 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  67 

coming  across  from  Wallace.  Upon  his  asking 
us  if  we  had  struck  the  Barrel  Springs,  we  told 
him  that  we  had  not,  and  he  was  very  much  as- 
tonished and  wondered  how  we  got  across. 
"Oh,"  said  John,  "  it  only  took  a  couple  of  days 
to  come  across;  and  any  outfit  that  could  not 
travel  two  or  three  days  without  food  or  drink, 
were  what  we  called  tender  feet  in  our  country." 
I  then  took  the  opportunity  to  inquire  what 
kind  of  a  place  the  springs  was.  He  told  us  that 
they  were  at  the  end  of  a  gravel -ridge,  where 
stood  quite  a  little  bush ;  and  at  that  season  of 
the  year  you  would  have  to  dig  about  two  or 
three  feet  into  the  earth  to  find  water.  This  was 
a  sufficient  description  to  fully  convince  us  that 
this  was  not  the  place  we  were  looking  for ;  and 
it  was  no  wonder  that  we  had  passed  them  in 
looking  for  a  stream  of  water  springing  from  the 
ground  with  a  now  of  a  hundred  gallons  per 
minute.  We  made  no  reply,  but  looked  at  each 
other  as  much  as  to  say,  "  Springs  in  this  country 
are  not  such  as  we  are  used  to."  Twilight  was 
gathering,  and  after  telling  us  the  old  battle- 
ground where  General  Chivington  and  his  fol- 
lowers massacred  five  hundred  Indians  one 
morning  before  breakfast,  several  years  ago,  was 


68 

but  a  few  miles  above  us,  he  said  that  he  would 
go,  as  he  wanted  to  stop  at  a  ranch  two  miles  be- 
low for  the  night.  Bidding  us  good-night,  and 
asking  us  to  call  upon  him  as  we  passed,  we 
parted. 

We  could  not  rest  until  we  went  to  see  this 
spot  so  well  known  to  every  person  throughout 
that  whole  country,  and  survey  the  ground 
where  so  many  eyes  were  closed  in  death  in  one 
short  hour.  We  found  the  spot  marked  by 
many  old  pieces  of  camp-equipments,  bows,  and 
saddles,  etc.,  all  pierced  with  bullets,  while  the 
many  skeletons  that  lay  bleaching  in  the  sun 
told  the  number  of  ponies  that  fell  in  that  great 
struggle.  The  same  barren  hills  that  re-echoed 
the  screams  of  the  squaws  and  papooses,  and  the 
whoop  of  the  warriors,  are  still  overlooking  the 
spot;  the  same  little  trees  that  spread  their  ten- 
der branches  over  a  slumbering  nation  upon  that 
last  night,  though  all  filled  with  lead,  were 
still  waving  in  the  breeze.  But  where,  oh, 
where  is  the  warrior  and  his  family  I  They  are 
sleeping  in  the  little  green  mounds  beneath  the 
same  trees  under  which  they  fell,  and  their  war- 
cries  are  no  more  to  be  heard.  The  war-dance  is 
over  and  the  gory  hatchet  lies  rusting  in  the 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  69 

earth.  The  wild  herds  are  unconsciously  crop- 
ping the  rich  grass  from  the  graves,  and  in  a  few 
years  the  fate  and  memory  of  a  whole  nation 
will  be  buried  in  the  solitude  of  Sand  Creek 
Valley.  The  scene  made  an  impression  upon 
my  mind  that  time  can  not  obliterate,  and  in 
silence  we  turned  away. 

We  had  now  spent  several  days  in  this  beauti- 
ful valley  ;  and  our  team  with  ourselves  having 
become  thoroughly  recruited,  we  again  broke 
camp  and  wound  slowly  down  the  creek  toward 
the  river.  Cattle  became  very  numerous  as  we 
advanced,  and  we  had  many  a  good  chat  with 
the  cow-boys  who  stayed  in  the  little  pole-cabins 
to  watch  over  the  cattle. 

In  a  few  days  we  were  in  sight  of  the  Arkan- 
sas Valley,  and  heard  the  roar  of  the  great 
stream.  The  river  rolls  through  a  most  lovely 
valley  about  two  miles  wide;  and  thousands  of 
cattle  are  pasturing  upon  the  rich  grass.  Thick 
groves  of  cotton-wood  skirted  the  banks,  and  a 
merrier  party  than  we  while  reclining  in  the 
green  shade  of  the  little  trees  never  pegged  a  tent 
to  the^soil. 

It  was  now  the  latter  part  of  August;  and  the 
weather  being  very  warm,  we  concluded  to  wan- 
der up  and  down  the  river,  fishing  and  hunting 


70 


to  pass  away  the  time  until  October,  when  we  in- 
tended to  go  south  for  a  winter's  hunt.  There  is 
much  of  this  valley  homesteaded  and  pre-empt- 
ed, and  many  little  pole  and  adobe-shanties  deck 
this  pretty  level  bank.  Here  we  could  hear  the 
voice  of  the  merry  housewife,  and  the  din  of  the 
playing  children  was  borne  to  our  ears  upon  the 
evening  breeze.  It  had  been  some  time, — aside 
from  Wallace, — since  we  had  seen  settlements  of 
this  kind ;  and  cultivating  their  acquaintances, 
we  found  them  quite  hospitable,  and  spent  many 
a  happy  evening  in  their  modest  little  homes. 

It  was  here  for  the  first  time  that  we  saw  farm- 
ing done  by  irrigation — this  being  the  only  way 
anything  whatever  can  be  raised  in  these  parts 
where  there  is  not  a  sprinkle  for  sometimes  nine 
months  at  a  period.  Upon  the  principle  of  a 
mill-race,  they  go  away  up  the  river,  and  at  some 
good  place  lead  the  water  from  the  stream  into  a 
ditch  which  winds  along  the  edge  of  the  plain, 
according  to  the  fall,  until  it  is  higher  than  the 
valley,  which  is  usually  very  level,  as  though  de- 
signed by  the  great  Creator  to  be  thus  used. 
This  ditch  is  sometimes  owned  by  the  land- 
owners, and  sometimes  by  companies,  who  charge 
the  settlers  so  much  per  annum  for  the  water  to 
irrigate.  The  channel  ofttimes  is  very  long,  and  it 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  71 

there  are  many  farmers  along  its  borders,  stock  in 
this  is  well  invested.  When  the  water  is  at  hand, 
the  land  is  plowed  and  the  seed  is  sown  or 
planted  in  the  loose,  sandy  soil.  The  gates  at 
the  ditch  are  then  lifted,  and  with  hoe  and  shovel 
they  watch  and  see  that  the  surface  is  all  covered 
with  water.  If  corn  or  potatoes  are  planted,  a 
furrow  is  drawn  along  each  side  of  the  row,  and 
the  water  is  let  to  course  through  these  until  the 
soil  is  thoroughly  saturated.  This  irrigation 
must  be  done  usually  once  or  twice  a  week,  de- 
pending somewhat  upon  the  temperature  of  the 
atmosphere  and  the  nature  and  condition  of  the 
soil.  We  have  seen  some  good  crops  thus  raised ; 
and  strange  to  say,  some  persons  who  have  lived 
here  for  several  years  say  they  would  farm  in 
no  other  country;  "for,"  they  say,  "we  do  our 
own  raining,  and  never  have  droughts  or  floods." 
Of  course  we  were  very  glad  to  see  them  so  well 
satisfied  with  their  fortunes;  but  as  for  us,  we 
preferred  living  in  God's  country,  where  the  water 
falls  from  the  clouds. 

Following  the  river  east,  claims  became  more 
and  more  numerous  until  we  arrived  at  Wichita, 
when  we  found  the  whole  valley  settled  up,  and 
were  surprised  to  see  the  great  buffalo- range  of 
so  few  years  ago  bearing  upon  its  bosom  great 


72  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

fields  of  rich,  golden  grain.  Going  west  toward 
the  mountains,  the  farmers  became  fewer  and 
fewer,  and  the  valley  and  plain  are  left  to 
the  stock-men.  About  sunset  thousands  of 
cattle  may  be  seen  coming  in  to  water  from  all 
directions,  until  the  whole  valley  is  a  moving 
mass.  The  plain  is  high  and  dry,  covered  with 
a  thick  growth  of  buffalo-grass,  and  perfectly 
destitute  of  all  else.  Not  even  a  hush  can  be 
seen  except  along  the  streams  or-- little  lakes, 
which  are  often  forty  and  fifty  miles  apart.  The 
cattle  and  all  wild  animals  range  along  the 
water,  feeding  five  and  six  miles  out  upon  the 
plain.  The  waters  on  the  plains  stand  in  pools, 
in  long,  deep  arrovvas ;  and  in  the  spring,  when 
the  snow  melts  in  the  mountains,  the  water 
courses  its  way  through  these  gulches  toward  the 
rivers.  The  rest  of  the  year  they  are  but  pools  ; 
and  these  seldom  dry  up.  Crossing  over  the  dry 
plain  from  one  water  to  another,  a  journey  of 
often  a  couple  of  days,  without  seeing  so  much 
as  a  wolf  to  break  the  monotony,  it  is  needless  to 
say  that  upon  coming  into  one  of  the  valleys  it 
appears  like  entering  a  paradise.  Having  spent 
several  weeks  hunting  over  these  parts,  it  was 
now  the  latter  part  of  September,  and  we  pre- 
pared to  start  south  for  a  buffalo  hunt. 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  73 


CHAPTER   III. 

Arrival  of  Lesher  and  Wonderly— Our  Start  South— First 
Buffalo  Herd— Cimaron  River— Strayed  Team— Old  Hunt- 
ers—How to  Hunt  Buffaloes— Wolf  Hunt— Prairie  Fire- 
Herd  at  Ten-Mile  Creek— Blizzard— Find  a  Frozen  Man- 
Hide  Season  Ends. 

When  the  October  sun  was  creeping  from  the 
horizon  and  the  melancholy  winds  were  roaring 
over  the  dry,  brown  prairie,  two  young  men  of 
Montgomery  County,  Ohio, — Charles  Wonderly 
and  David  Lesher, — came  out  on  the  train  and 
met  us  at  Granada.  Being  now  a  party  of  four, 
we  were  well  prepared,  and  went  to  Las  Animas 
to  lay  in  supplies  for  a  buffalo  campaign.  We 
bought  flour,  meal,  salt,  pepper,  tobacco,  etc., 
and  a  few  sacks  of  corn  to  feed  our  horses  when 
the  winter's  snow  had  come.  We  also  took  a 
keg  of  brandy,  for  snake-bites,  and  enough  am- 
munition to  kill  everything  in  Texas.  We  then 
came  east,  into  the  Arkansas  Valley,  intending 
to  strike  south  from  Granada. 

When  we  got  within  fifteen  miles  of  Granada 
some  cow-boys  came  riding  up  the  valley,  spur- 


74  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

ring  their  ponies  to  their  utmost,  and  warning* 
settlers  that  a  band  of  Cheyennes  had  been  seen 
down  the  river.  Great  excitement  prevailed  for 
the  safety  of  the  wives  and  children,  who — there 
being  but  a  few  families — were  hurried  to  the- 
ranche  of  Captain  Irwiri.  We  brought  our  po- 
nies under  the  cover  of  our  guns,  and  took 
quarters  in  the  same  adobe  hut. 

John  and  myself  had  seen  a  little  skirmishing 
before,  and  by  this  time  were  pretty  well  accli- 
mated; but  Dave  and  Charles! — boys  just  from 
protected  homes  and  the  quietude  of  civilization,, 
— imagine  their  feelings  after  reading  of  the 
bloody  deeds  of  the  red-man,  and  now  that  their 
yells  were  in  their  very  ears. 

The  windows  and  port-holes  were  thrown 
open,  and  with  Sharpe's  rifles  in  our  hands  we- 
keenly  watched  for  a  red  devil  upon  whom  to 
try  our  skill. 

There  was  a  school-marm  staying  there,  to- 
teach  the  children  of  Mr.  Irwiii,  and  with  her  I 
had  previously  become  acquainted.  After  wait- 
ing for  some  time  for  Indians,  I  concluded  to 
take  advantage  of  the  occasion,  and  to  beat  my 
sword  into  a  pruning-hook  and  try  to  hook  a 
little  love  out  of  the  school-marm.  She  was  late 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  75 

from  the  East,  and,  it  is  needless  to  say,  was 
much  excited.  This  made  her  quite  gentle;  and 
by  assuming  a  brave  appearance,  with  my  big 
gun  in  hand  and  telling  her  there  was  no  danger, 
I  gained  her  confidence,  and  she  hung  to  my 
arm  like  a  squirrel  to  a  hickory  sapling  when 
hunters  are  thick.  You  may  all  talk  about  In- 
dians being  good  marksmen,  but  I  will  venture 
to  say  that  there  is  not  an  Indian  in  the  whole 
Cheyenne  nation  that  could  shoot  me  nearer  the- 
heart  than  did  that  school-marm  in  the  little 
adobe  ranche. 

Hours  flew  by  like  leaves  before  the  wind,  and 
at  length  a  man  came  riding  up  and  stated  that 
he  was  the  person  who  gave  the  alarm.  He  was 
a  tender-foot  cow-boy.  He  stated  that  one  of 
their  boys  had  started  upon  his  pony  to  cross  the 
plain  to  another  range  about  twenty  miles  dis- 
tant; that  just  as  he  was  going  over  the  raise  he- 
saw  four  or  five  Indians  on  horseback  cut  him 
off  from  camp  and  chase  him  out  of  sight,  quirt- 
ing their  ponies  to  their  utmost  speed.  He  had 
also  heard  a  shot  fired,  and  which  he  supposed 
had  told  his  death.  We  questioned  him  very 
closely,  and  told  him  how  he  might  have  been 
deceived;  but  he  was  very  positive,  and  said  he- 


76  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

would  swear  to  his  statement.  At  this,  four  of 
us,  well  mounted  and  with  each  a  brace  of  six- 
shooters  and  a  Sharpe's  rifle,  started  out  to  trace 
up  our  friend.  We  went  to  the  raise  where  he 
said  he  had  seen  them  pass  over,  and  by  a  care- 
ful examination  could  discover  but  one  horse- 
track  in  the  sand,  and  this  showed  that  the  horse 
had  been  running.  After  scouring  the  country 
for  several  miles  and  seeing  but  the  single  track, 
all  began  to  theorize  how  he  might  have  been 
deceived;  and  although  he  expressed  himself 
very  positive,  we  concluded  to  go  back  and  wait 
until  morning,  when  the  young  man  was  to 
•come  back. 

It  was  an  anxious  night  for  the  settlers,  who 
expected  a  general  slaughter  in  the  valley;  and 
the  bloody  outrages  committed  in  the  neigboring 
ranges,  of  which  reports  had  been  coming  in 
•daily  from  all  directions,  lent  terror  to  those 
who  had  infants  to  protect.  As  for  me,  Indians 
or  no  Indians,  what  cared  I  so  the  school-marm 
•came  off  safely ! 

At  last  the  darkness  began  to  give  way  to  the 
light  of  the  morn;  and  about  nine  o'clock, 
through  a  field-glass,  from  a  house-top,  an  object 
was  sighted  in  the  distance.  Nearer  and  nearer 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  77 

and  plainer  and  plainer  it  became,  until  we  were 
all  satisfied  that  the  lost  was  found  and  the  dead 
had  come  to  life.  He  was  much  surprised  at  the 
excitement  his  little  chase  had  caused.  He  said 
that  just  as  he  was  going  over  the  raise  he 
chased  four  great  sand-hill  cranes,  and  shot  at 
them  over  the  hill.  The  scene  was  now  ex- 
plained and  the  mystery  solved.  These  cranes 
are  large,  and  in  flying  along  close  to  the  ground 
our  friend  had  imagined  the  long,  slender  wings 
whipping  the  air,  to  be  Indian  arms  whipping 
their  ponies;  and  knowing  them  to  be  in  the 
country  still  colored  the  imagination.  The 
young  man  was  much  mortified  at  his  deception  . 
and  they  all  laughed  at  him  so  much  that  he 
peered  toward  the  hills  as  though  wishing  the 
Indians  would  come  and  ally  with  him  to  kill 
the  whole  valley.  This  little  incident  taught  us 
to  always  be  on  our  guard  and  to  never  run 
until  we  saw  the  elephant. 

The  school-marrn  thanked  me  for  my  kind- 
ness, and  gave  me  an  affectionate  good-by;  and 
as  we  pulled  out  she  looked  after  us,  and  Dave 
and  Charles  drew  long  breaths,  as  though  envy- 
ing me  my  affectionate  relations  with  the  Birdie 
of  the  prairie. 


78 

Leaving  the  valley  and  going  south,  we  came 
upon  a  broad,  level  plain,  where  the  horizon 
looked  like  a  great  wagon-wheel  and  we  could 
see  many  miles  in  all  directions.  The  first  water 
was  Plum  Creek,  in  nine  miles.  This  is  a  dry 
gulch  running  through  the  prairie,  with  pools 
every  mile  or  two.  In  very  dry  summers  they 
become  dry.  The  next  water  was  Butte  Creek,  in 
six  miles;  and  here  we  camped  for  the  night. 
This  is  like  Plum  Creek,  only  the  gulch  is  very 
deep  and  the  country  is  extremely  rough  upon 
either  side.  The  valley  is  full  of  cotton-wood 
trees  and  brier-bushes;  and  the  hungry  wolves 
howled  loudly  behind  every  hill.  Dave  and 
Charles  had  heard  too  much  about  wolves  to  rest 
easily  where  they  were  so  numerous;  and  the 
roar  of  their  rifles  and  six-shooters  made  the 
night  a  lively  one.  In  the  morning  several  big 
grays  lay  dead  in  the  valley  as  the  result  of  the 
late  lead-storm.  I  told  them  that  they  would 
have  to  be  saving  with  the  ammunition;  but 
they  said  ammunition  would  be  of  no  use  when 
they  were  devoured  by  wolves,  and  we  would 
have  been  eaten  up  alive  that  very  night  had 
they  not  fought  so  hard;  "for,"  said  they,  "as 
we  sat  by  the  fire  their  eyes  glittered  among  the 


THROUGH    THE    WEST,  79 

hills  like  stars  in  the  heavens,  and  every  now 
and  then  a  big  fellow  would  howl  out  at  our 
very  sides,  as  much  as  to  say,  'I  got  him.' J: 

We  took  an  early  start,  and  traveled  over  the 
dry  country  until  the  sun  was  hiding  himself  in 
the  west,  when,  having  traveled  full  thirty  miles, 
we  again  came  among  the  hills  and  caught  sight 
of  the  tops  of  some  little  trees  that  grew  in  a 
deep  gulch,  and  we  knew  we  were  now  near 
water. 

We  had  advanced  but  a  short  distance  after 
sighting  the  trees  when  we  also  saw  some  dark 
objects  just  beyond.  "Buffaloes!"  was  the  first 
flash  through  our  minds ;  and  our  field-glass 
told  us  that  we  were  right.  Buffaloes  were  what 
we  were  hunting;  and,  mounting  my  pony,  with 
my  big  Sharpe  in  hand,  I  was  soon  wending  my 
way  down  the  deep,  dry  gulch  until  I  was  just 
opposite  the  herd;  and,  tying  the  pony  to  a  cot- 
ton-wood, I  crawled  up  to  survey.  There  were 
thirty-eight  in  the  herd,  and  they  were  leisurely 
feeding  up  a  green  ravine  that  lay  parallel  with 
Bear  Creek  and  led  into  it  some  distance  below. 
They  were  several  hundred  yards  south  of  me, 
but  by  crawling  cautiously  along  I  succeeded  in 
getting  into  the  ravine  about  four  hundred  yards 


80  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

above  them  without  being  noticed,  and  impa- 
tiently awaited  the  oncome.  When  they  got 
within  about  three  hundred  yards  of  me  some 
of  the  old  bulls  appeared  to  see  me,  arid,  with 
heads  erect,  on  they  came,  stopping  at  intervals 
to  paw  the  earth  and  ring  my  ears  with  their 
bellowing.  The  whole  herd  at  length  saw  me, 
and  curiously  started  to  inspect  the  dark  object 
stretched  out  upon  the  plain  before  them.  I 
thought  about  shooting  until  they  were  within, 
two  hundred  yards  of  me,  when  my  giant 
strength  failed  me  and  I  lay  like  the  slain  Go- 
liath, helplessly  stretched  upon  the  earth.  I  had 
often  heard  of  buck-ague,  but  if  that  was  my 
attack  I  am  sure  its  effects  were  never  fully  de- 
scribed; for  I  felt  as  though  a  bucketful  of  blood 
jumped  through  my  heart  at  a  time,  and  every 
time  my  pulse  beat  I  believe  I  jumped  four 
inches  from  the  sod.  This  was  the  first  wild 
herd  I  had  ever  seen ;  and  having  my  firet  expe- 
rience upon  the  open  plain  all  by  myself,  with- 
out a  tree  to  climb  or  a  stump  to  hide  behind  in 
case  of  immersion,  I  must  say  somewhat  terrified 
me;  and  while  thinking  of  all  the  danger  I  might 
be  in,  they  suddenly  started  off  in  a  lope,  as 
though  scenting  me,  and  certainly  to  my  very 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  81 

great  relief.  This  was  now  my  opportunity  to 
try  my  hand;  and,  running  to  the  top  of  a  little 
knoll,  I  took  aim  from  my  knee  at  an  old  bull 
that  had  stopped  to  look  back,  and  pulled.  I 
did  not  consider  that  I  was  firing  a  one-hundred- 
grain  gun,  and  having  my  nose  entirely  too  close 
it  was  some  time  before  I  was  conscious  of  what 
had  taken  place.  When  the  blood  had  stopped 
running  and  the  smoke  had  cleared  away,  and  I 
found  that  I  had  not  shot  myself,  I  looked  up  to 
see  the  last  buffalo  disappear  behind  the  raise. 
Shoepishly  I  retired,  amid  the  shouts  from  the 
boys;  and  though  we  had  no  success  this  time  we 
knew  that  we  were  now  in  the  buffalo  region  at 
last,  and  supposed  ourselves  more  able  to  tackle 
the  next  gang,  be  it  great  or  small. 

The  water  of  which  we  just  spoke  we  learned 
to  be  Bear  Creek;  and  a  pretty  ravine  it  was, 
too.  The  water  stood  in  little  pools  like  Butte 
Creek,  and  these  were  fed  by  springs.  There 
were  a  great  many  cattle  and  rich  pasture  there, 
and  old  cow-camps  were  to  be  seen  all  up  and 
down  the  creek.  Stopping  here  for  several  days, 
we  enjoyed  ourselves  very  much  in  the  thick 
shade  of  the  little  trees  through  the  heat  of  the 
day ;  and  though  we  saw  no  more  buffalo,  ante- 


82 


lopes  were  numerous,  and  we  had  much  sport 
shooting  these  shy  creatures  as  they  came  down 
unconsciously  from  the  plain  to  quench  their 
thirst  from  the  pools  among  the  mighty  Bear 
Creek  bluffs.  Charles  had  never  shot  an  ante- 
lope ;  and  to  describe  the  maneuvering  of  his  first 
experience  would  fill  a  volume.  One  morning 
he  came  running  into  camp  and  said  that  a  flock 
of  antelopes  were  coming  in  to  water  just  below, 
and  grabbing  a  rifle  he  dashed  away.  I  fol- 
lowed him  closely,  and  when  he  crawled  up  be- 
hind a  rock  to  shoot  I  was  near  him  behind  an- 
other and  could  see  it  all.  Down  came  a  big 
buck  to  the  pool,  and  after  looking  slyly  around 
began  to  drink.  This  was  Charley's  opportu- 
nity; and  after  going  through  all  the  motions 
of  a  monkey  in  a  show-pen,  whang  went  the 
rifle,  and  down  came  the  buck,  "liight  through 
the  heart,  by  thunder!  "  said  he,  and  throwing 
down  his  rifle  he  dashed  upon  his  prey.  He 
had  caught  him  through  the  loins;  and  though 
the  buck  struggled  hard,  Charley  hung  to  him 
like  a  Dutch  butcher,  and  at  last  cut  off  his 
wind.  I  made  off  for  camp,  and  Charley  never 
knew  that  I  was  near.  Soon  he  came  in  whis- 
tling, with  the  buck  across  his  back ;  and  though 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  83 

it  weighed  at  least  one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
pounds,  he  stood  in  camp  full  five  minutes  with 
the  buck  upon  his  back,  explaining  how  he  did 
it.  We  all  laughed  a  great  deal  at  Charley's 
shooting  antelope  through  the  heart,  and  he 
often  asked  us  how  the  devil  we  knew  where  he 
aimed. 

We  at  length  grew  eager  for  another  trial  at 
the  kings  of  the  prairie,  and  pulled  out  for  the 
Cimaron  River,  where  we  expected  to  make  a 
head-quarter  camp  and  put  in  the  winter  hunt- 
ing over  the  South.  W  e  reached  the  river  after 
a  march  of  about  thirty  miles,  and  were  now 
about  seventy-five  miles  south  of  the  A.,  T.,  & 
S.  F.  B.  R.,  and  all  civilization.  Skirting  the 
banks  of  every  water  we  had  yet  passed  were 
little  trees;  but  here  there  was  not  even  a  twig 
the  size  of  a  finger. 

We  had  learned  before  to  burn  buffalo-chips, 
and  as  far  as  fuel  was  concerned  we  were  all 
right;  but  the  next  question,  and  the  most  per- 
plexing, was  how  to  make  a  house  in  which  to 
store  our  supplies,  and  for  our  protection  in  win- 
ter, as  well  as  a  retreat  from  danger.  Here  lay  the 
spade  and  there  stuck  the  pick,  but  the  only 
material  we  could  see  for  a  house  was  the  dry 


84  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

earth.  Dave  was  a  carpenter,  and  we  told  him 
he  should  begin  the  frame.  Bat  he  said  he  was 
not  used  to  working  in  that  kind  of  timber. 
We  found  a  deep  dry  gulch  leading  to  the  river, 
and  going  to  work  we  soon  had  a  chamber  dug 
in  the  bank,  eighteen  feet  long  and  twelve  feet 
wide,  four  feet  deep  on  the  lower  side,  and  seven 
feet  deep  on  the  high  side,  with  a  narrow  pass- 
way  into  the  gulch.  We  then  dug  a  fireplace  in 
the  high  side,  and  worked  from  top  and  bottom 
until  we  finished  the  flue.  All  was  then  com- 
pleted but  the  roof;  and  using  our  tent-poles  for 
supporters,  we  stretched  a  couple  of  wagon- 
sheets  from  the*  high  to  the  low  side,  and  pegged 
them  to  the  ground  at  each  end.  We  had  thus 
a  tolerably  safe  retreat  from  the  wind  and  sun; 
and  moving  all  our  things  in  there,  we  conclud- 
ed to  wait  for  a  few  days  and  then  go  to  Bear 
Creek  for  poles  to  put  on  a  good  roof.  The 
weather  being  very  fine,  and  not  having  seen  a 
sprinkle  for  many  days,  we  put  the  work  off  from 
time  to  time ;  and  one  evening  of  the  first  week 
in  our  new  abode,  when  least  expecting  it,  we 
were  much  surprised  to  see  the  sky  suddenly 
veil  itself  with  dark  clouds,  and  empty  its 
flood  upon  us.  I  had  read  about  the  windows  of 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  85 

heaven  being  opened,  but,  my  God  !  I  thought 
the  whole  side  of  the  house  had  fallen  out  upon 
this  occasion.  The  floor  of  our  house  was 
sticky  clay,  and  not  having  seen  a  sprinkle  for 
so  long,  while  our  muslin  roof  carried  off  the 
dampness,  we  enjoyed  the  occasion  very  much. 
Soon,  however,  the  ground  began  to  soften,  the 
pins  to  pull  out,  and  the  fun  was  then  at  an  end. 
The  water  falling  upon  the  loose  canvas,  it 
bagged  down,  and  directly  out  came  a  peg, 
and  splash  came  two  or  three  buckets  of 
water  into  our  new  house.  Seeing  that  we 
might  as  well  have  no  cover  at  all,  we  piled  our 
things  upon  boxes  and  covered  them  with  oil- 
cloth, and  took  it  as  it  came.  Our  tent  was  rip- 
ped to  pieces,  and  this  was  our  only  scheme. 
Soon  the  mud  was  ankle-deep  all  over  our  new 
floor,  and  the  last  smoke  slowly  curled  from  the 
few  damp  buffalo-chips  that  lay  frying  upon  the 
hearth.  Our  condition  about  that  time  was  not 
at  all  enviable;  and  we  looked  in  every  direction 
and  contemplated  every  scheme.  But  we  at 
last  concluded  that  foxes  have  dry  holes,  and  the 
birds  of  the  air  have  sheltered  nests ;  but  green- 
horn buffalo-hunters  must  stand  in  mud  up  to 
their  knees  and  be  baptized  in  a  way  that  God 


86 


knows  is  not  agreeable  to  anybody's  belief. 
Charles  and  myself  figured  on  the  wagon,  and 
throwing  a  lot  of  wolf-hides  and  our  harness 
upon  the  ground,  we  crawled  under  the  wagon 
upon  them;  and  wrapping  ourselves  in  our  wet 
blankets,  we  took  the  collars  for  pillows  and 
tried  to  think  ourselves  comfortable.  But  the 
wind  was  blowing  fiercely  and  the  rain  falling  at 
an  incredible  rate.  We  were  soon  completely 
drenched ;  and  the  water  -gurgled  good,  good, 
good,  down  through  the  horse-collars.  The  wa- 
ter was  rushing  in  torrents  down  the  hill-sides, 
and  stood  in  sheets  upon  the  level.  We  saw 
clearly  that  it  was  immersion  or  get  out  of  there, 
and  we  chose  the  latter.  Our  wits  were  then  at 
an  end,  and  we  concluded  that  if  we  owned  hell 
and  that  country,  we  would  rent  out  the  latter 
and  live  in  the  former.  A  chicken  sitting  out 
upon  the  naked  limb  of  an  apple-tree  in  a  cold 
winter's  storm  is  not  to  be  compared  to  a  boy 
standing  in  mud  knee-deep,  with  water  dashing 
about  his  ears  like  a  water-wheel,  and  pouring 
from  his  nose  like  a  house-spout,  and  not  even  a 
pin  to  hang  himself  up  on.  Dave  was  all  the 
while  silent,  and  seated  upon  a  box  in  the  dug- 
out, wrapped  in  a  blanket,  and  looking  into  the 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  87 

fireplace  as  though  comparing  the  place  with  hell, 
and  rebel  prisons,  and  all  other  noted  places  in  his 
dreams.  John  had  learned  some  of  the  western 
dialect,  and  was  seated  upon  the  wagon,  with  a 
blanket  over  him,  rehearsing  what  he  had 
learned;  and  I  thought  from  what  little  I  knew 
of  it  he  succeeded  very  well,  and  learned  fast, 
and  remembered  first-rate. 

We,  however,  were  living,  though  not  in  the 
best  of  humor,  when  about  three  o'clock  in  the 
morning  it  suddenly  turned  cold  and  began  to 
sleet.  Now  if  any  painter  can  picture  the  scene 
of  that  camp,  or  any  writer  describe  the  condi- 
tion and  feeling  of  that  party  who  groped  in 
the  darkness  of  that  cave  on  the  banks  of  the 
Cimaron  on  that  cold,  dreary  morn,  he  must 
have  been  there  himself.  Every  blanket  that  we 
had,  and  every  thread  of  clothing  that  wrapped 
our  forms  was  wet  and  dripping.  There  was 
not  a  dry  piece  of  fur;  and  we  raced  over  the 
prairie  and  rubbed  ourselves  to  keep  the  blood 
in  circulation.  I  tell  you  the  sharp  wind  that 
whistled  by  and  roared  among  the  hills  soon 
aroused  Dave  from  his  slumbers,  and  he  was  the 
most  frantic  racer  I  ever  saw.  He  could  run 
over  a  jack-rabbit  in  one  hundred  yards.  "When 


88  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

we  were  tired  of  running,  with  pick  and  spade 
we  set  to  work  digging  in  the  earth  at  the 
mouth  of  the  dug-out  to  keep  warm  and  to 
lower  it  so  as  to  drain  out  the  water  and  mud. 
Morning  came  and  we  were  still  alive,  but  red- 
der noses  than  ours  never  roamed  a  Colorado 
dram-shop.  Our  horses,  too,  were  covered  with 
ice,  and  must  have  felt  pretty  uncomfortable. 
At  length  the  sun  slowly  rolled  from  the  horizon 
and  sent  his  sparkling  beams  upon  the  dismal 
plain,  and  drew  all  animation  to  the  eastern 
slopes.  By  great  exercise  we  managed  to  dry 
our  clothes  upon  us,  and  felt  pretty  comfort- 
able again. 

We  had  now  escaped  the  cold,  but  the  hunger 
part  was  yet  to  come.  John  and  myself  had  had 
an  experience  of  fourteen  days  upon  flap-jacks, 
and  two  days  and  a  half  without  eating  or  drink- 
ing, and  of  course  ice  did  not  figure  quite  as 
closely  as  Dace  and  Charles,  who  had  been  but  a 
few  weeks  from  the  land  of  plenty  and  comfort. 
Nevertheless,  we  had  to  fast  that  day  until  to- 
ward evening,  when  we  found  some  small  rushes 
upon  the  banks  of  the  river,  which  were  dried  in 
the  sun.  Placing  some  bones  together,  we  built 
fire  upon  them  with  the  rushes  and  kept  it  up 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  89 

until  the  bones  were  heated.  Then  slicing 
some  meat  real  fine,  we  put  it  in  a  thin  sheet- 
iron  skillet,  and  placing  it  upon  the  heated 
bones,  and  continually  applying  rushes,  we  were 
enabled  to  fry  ourselves  a  little  repast.  This 
was  a  new  scheme,  and  while  delighted  with  our 
ingenuity  we  forgot  that  we  had  nothing  but 
meat,  arid  thought  it  the  best  meat  we  had  eaten 
for  many  days.  We  were  very  glad  to  see  the 
face  of  the  plain  once  more  dry,  and  determined 
to  prepare  for  the  next  immersion. 

The  next  day  Charles  and  myself  started  for 
Bear  Creek  for  poles,  and  John  and  Dave  stayed 
with  the  camp.  We  got  to  Bear  Creek  that  day 
and  cut  the  poles  in  the  evening,  and  the  next 
morning  started  back.  About  sunset  we  were 
at  home;  and  the  next  day  \ve  placed  the  poles 
over  the  hole  or  cave,  and  after  covering  them 
with  rushes,  applied  a  coat  of  dirt.  Our  house 
was  then  completed,  and  we  were  prepared  for 
future  contingencies. 

Here  was  the  tender-foot  outfit,  our  home  a 
dark  cave  in  the  bluff  of  the  Cimaron,  seventy- 
five  miles  from  the  smallest  settlement,  and  our 
only  neighbors  the  wild  animals  of  the  plain. 
Our  long-hunted  range  was  at  last  reached,  and 


90  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

the  buffalo  could  be  seen  upon  the  distant  hill- 
sides, and  their  lowing  could  be  distinctly  heard. 
The  gray  wolf,  of  which  we  had  heard  so  much, 
was  here  too  in  such  numbers  as  to  be  very  bold; 
and  their  piercing  howls,  which  would  make  the 
boldest  inexperienced  man  shudder,  could  be 
heard  at  night  at  our  very  door. 

Being  now  in  the  happy  hunting-ground,  we 
prepared  for  a  big  hunt.  We  had  the  Sharpe 
rifle, — forty-five  caliber,  one  hundred  grains, — 
and  forty-five  caliber  Colt,  and  Smith  $  Wesson 
six-shooters.  Having  the  best  of  fire-arms,  and 
loads  of  ammunition,  we  felt  ourselves  a  match 
for  anything  that  chose  a  daylight  battle;  and 
now  for  the  hunt. 

By  having  our  camp  so  well  concealed,  the 
game  at  first  came  close  around  the  dug-out,  en- 
tirely unconscious  of  an  enemy;  but  from  the 
daily  explosions  in  that  ravine  they  soon  learned 
to  be  shy,  and  appeared  to  regard  the  little  hole 
in  the  ground  as  a  dangerous  place. 

We  saw  our  first  antelope  in  western  Nebraska, 
where  they  were  so  wild  that  the  most  expe- 
rienced hunter  could  scarcely  ever  succeed  in 
killing  one.  They  had  become  more  and  more 
numerous,  however,  until  we  were  now  in  their 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  91 

very  homes,  and  little  bands  could  be  seen  upon 
every  hil!.  This  animal  is  some  larger  than  a 
sheep,  and  is  white-and-brown  spotted.  The 
bucks  are  the  larger,  and  have  horns  about  eight 
inches  long.  They  are  the  most  vigilant  animal 
of  the  prairie ;  and  in  their  most  quiet  state- 
usually  take  one  bite  and  two  looks,  and  upon 
the  least  alarm  start  oft  at  such  speed  as  to 
almost  baffle  the  eye.  We  had  exhausted  our 
ingenuity  and  had  many  days'  experience  before 
we  could  successfully  make  our  bullets  tell  in 
the  vigilant  herds.  The  following  are  some  of 
the  puccessful  schemes  :  In  cold,  stormy  weather 
they  take  shelter  in  the  ravines  and  behind  the 
bluffs,  and  of  course  can  then  be  readily  shot,  in 
a  rough  country;  but  in  ordinary  weather  they 
usually  keep  upon  high  places,  so  that  you  can 
scarcely  ever  get  near  enough  to  shoot  them 
without  being  detected.  In  this  case,  take  a 
horse  and  start  oft'  obliquely  toward  them ;  be 
upon  the  leeward  side,  and  never  look  directly 
at  them.  Keep  sidling  toward  the  flock,  and 
going  round,  but  be  cautious  that  you  never  go- 
directly  toward  them.  In  this  way  one  can 
often  get  within  shooting  distance,  which  is  fair 
at  four  hundred  yards.  If  you  have  no  horser 


92  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

go  as  closely  as  you  can  without  being  detected, 
and  then  crawl, — always  keeping  the  wind  of 
them,  as  they  will  scare  quicker  at  scent  than  at 
sight.  When  they  look  toward  you,  do  not 
move  a  finger,  and  look  down  ;  but  when  they 
are  not  looking,  crawl  quickly.  They  usually  be- 
come very  curious,  and  come  toward  you,  snuff- 
ing the  air  and  stamping  their  feet.  Then  watch 
your  chance;  for  when  they  are  once  satisfied 
that  you  are  an  enemy,  and  start  to  run,  you 
might  as  well  try  to  shoot  the  lightning's  glare. 
A  red  flag  is  a  very  good  thing  to  tie  on  your 
.hat,  and  then  get  in  some  conspicuous  place  and 
lie  still.  It  will  not  be  long  before  they  will 
•come  to  see  you.  They  are  very  sharp,  and  use 
great  canning  in  investigating  the  dangers  that 
lurk  in  their  vicinity.  They  can  often  be  de- 
ceived by  getting  some  one  to  drive  a  wagon  ob- 
liquely toward  them,  and  at  some  place  near, 
where  there  is  a  little  raise  or  bunch  of  weeds 
or  grass,  jump  off  while  the  wagon  is  moving. 
Be  careful  that  you  are  not  detected.  They  will 
watch  the  team  very  closely,  and  as  the  wagon 
•circles  to  the  other  side  of  them  and  their  backs 
are  turned  to  you,  you  can  often  crawl  upon 
them  without  being  discovered.  If  they  start 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  93 

to  run,  just  throw  a  ball  in  the  sand  ahead  of 
them.  Several  balls  will  often  so  excite  them  that 
they  are  as  apt  to  run  toward  you  as  any  other 
way.  Always  shoot  behind  the  shoulder,  if  pos- 
sible ;  for  they  are  animals  of  such  great  spirit 
that  anything  but  a  mortal  shot  does  not  appear 
to  disable  them ;  and  I  have  heard  of  an  ante- 
lope with  three  legs  broken  and  both  eyes  shot 
out,  outrunning  a  horse  in  a  fair  race.  I  shall 
not  vouch  for  the  truth  of  this,  but  there  is  more 
truth  about  it  than  any  person  who  has  never 
seen  an  antelope  would  be  willing  to  believe. 
Any  person  who  can  hunt  this  animal  with  suc- 
cess is  truly  an  ingenious  sportsman. 

We  took  advantage  of  the  buffaloes  that  came 
among  the  river-hills  near  our  camp,  and  in  a 
couple  of  days  we  had  a  load  of  meat,  consisting 
of  shoulder-clods,  saddles,  humps,  and  tongues ; 
and  Dave  and  myself  started  north  to  the- Ar- 
kansas Valley  to  sell  out,  while  John  and 
Charles  stayed  in  camp.  We  made  it  to  Bear 
Creek  in  one  day,  Butte  Creek  the  next,  and  the 
third  day  about  noon  we  came  to  the  railroad. 
There  were  many  emigrants  going  up  the  valley 
to  the  mountains,  and  to  these  and  the  settlers 
we  had  no  trouble  in  disposing  of  our  load  at 


94  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

five  cents  per  pound.     The  load  brought  us  just 
fifty  dollars. 

We  found  it  a  little  unhandy  to  have  our  grub 
and  cooking  outfit  scattered  promiscuously 
through  the  wagon,  and  I  thought  it  would  be 
nice  and  convenient  to  have  a  mess-box.  So, 
the  morning  that  we  started  back  for  camp  we 
passed  by  a  neat  little  adobe  house,  and  we 
stopped  to  ask  the  man  for  his  doors,  to  make  a 
mess-box.  There  was  no  one  about,  so  we  took 
oft  the  only  two  doors  and  drove  on.  Dave, 
with  all  his  Methodist  Episcopal  modesty, — 
which  he  had  forgotten  to  leave  at  home, — said 
it  was  not  right  to  take  the  doors ;  but  I  told 
him  that  I  was  a  member  of  the  Colorado  State 
Board  of  Equalization ;  and  a  house  without 
doors  was  still  better  than  doors  without  a 
house.  This  was  downright  hunter's  logic. 

We  camped  at  Butte  Creek  for  the  night,  and 
in  the  evening  we  worked  up  the  doors.  We 
made  a  cupboard  three  leet  high,  as  wide  as  the 
wagon-bed,  and  fourteen  inches  deep ;  and  then 
boxed  and  shelved  it  to  suit  our  needs,  leaving  a 
space  to  the  right  large  enough  for  a  fifty-pound 
sack  of  flour,  and  in  the  bottom  of  the  cupboard 
a  space  for  the  bread-pan,  oven,  frying-pan,  etc. 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  95 

The  rest  was  partitioned  off  in  smaller  spaces 
for  pepper,  salt,  baking-powder,  etc.  Then,  tak- 
ing out  the  end-gate,  we  set  the  cupboard  in  the 
back  part  of  the  wagon  and  passed  the  bed- rods 
through  it,  and  it  was  fastened.  We  then  made 
a  door  large  enough  to  cover  the  face  of  the  cup- 
board, and  with  the  hinges  that  we  had  saved 
from  the  doors  hinged  it  to  the  bottom  of  the 
wagon-bed;  and  making  a  latch  to  the  top  of 
the  cupboard,  with  a  piece  of  calf-hide  and  a 
pin,  the  box  was  neatly  finished.  I  then  cut  off 
a  stick  the  height  of  the  bottom  of  the  wagon - 
bed,  and  wiring  it  to  the  door  where  it  was 
latched,  the  thing  was  completed.  The  lid  could 
be  unlatched,  and,  coming  down,  it  would  rest 
upon  the  stake,  and  there  was  a  table,  and  ev- 
erything in  the  mess- chest  was  clean  and  handy. 
This  arrangement  was  so  splendid  that  a  broad 
grin  came  over  Dave's  face  in  spite  of  his  con- 
science. 

The  next  morning  we  arose  and  started  for 
Bear  Creek,  reaching  it  just  at  sunset.  Wish- 
ing to  give  our  team  as  much  range  as  possible 
without  leaving  them  entirely  free  (and  having 
no  hobbles),  we  took  a  picket-rope  about  thirty 
feet  long  and  tied  one  end  around  each  horse's 


96 


neck.  We  thought  they  would  hardly  stray  far 
from  camp;  and  after  watching  them  for  a 
while,  and  discovering  that  they  never  both 
took  a  notion  to  go  the  same  way,  we  felt  that 
they  were  secure,  and  after  supper  lay  down 
for  the  night.  The  weather  was  warm,  the 
evening  was  beautiful,  and  our  sleep  was  sweet. 
At  daylight  I  arose  to  look  for  the  horses.  I 
went  among  the  hills  and  upon  the  highest 
bluffs,  and  peered  in  every  direction ;  but  there 
was  not  a  horse  in  sight.  We  tried  to  track 
them,  but  they  had  no  shoes  on,  and  their  tracks 
could  not  be  distinguished  from  those  of  the 
wild  herds.  After  hunting  among  the  hills  and 
down  the  ravines  until  noon,  we  concluded  that 
they  must  have  gone  back  to  the  railroad  to  tell 
the  fellow  who  took  his  doors.  We  had  left  the 
riding  ponies  at  the  camp  upon  the  Cimaron, 
and  we  were  now  left  afoot.  We  had  turned 
them  upon  the  north  side  of  the  creek,  and  not 
being  able  to  find  where  they  had  crossed  over 
to  the  south,  our  suspicion  was  strengthened; 
and  taking  a  few  biscuits  in  our  pockets,  with 
compass  in  hand,  we  struck  northward  across 
the  thirty- mile  stretch  of  dry  plains  for  Butte 
Creek.  We  had  nothing  to  carry  water  in,  and 
a  pint  of  brandy  was  all  we  took  to  drink. 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  97 

The  afternoon  was  very  warm,  and  the  sand 
was  burning  hot.  The  brandy  tasted  like  sugar- 
water,  and  was  gone  before  we  had  traveled  five 
miles.  We  became  very  dry  when  we  were 
about  midway;  but  the  dwellings  and  shade 
trees  were  very  scarce  in  that  country,  and  we 
were  compelled  to  stand  it.  One  of  my  boots 
rubbed  a  great  blister  upon  my  heel,  and  I  pull- 
ed the  boot  oft'  and  went  barefooted.  The  foot 
soon  became  sore  upon  the  scorching  sand,  and 
tearing  a  sleeve  from  my  hunting-coat  I  tied  it 
around  my  foot  for  a  moccasin.  All  animals 
range  along  the  water,  feeding  out  from  five  to 
eight  miles;  and  there  were  several  miles  of  our 
journey  upon  which  there  was  not  an  animal  or 
insect,  and  the  country  was  level  as  a  floor.  We 
sat  down  now  and  then  to  rest;  but  it  was  a 
rather  uncomfortable  rest.  We  were  compelled 
to  walk  very  rapidly  to  reach  water  that  night ; 
and  as  we  rushed  along,  the  bright  sun  and  the 
heat  that  curled  from  the  hot  sand  almost 
blinded  us. 

Once,  while  we  were  sitting  down,  we  saw 
something  that  looked  like  horses  far  to  the 
north,  and  taking  our  glass  we  fully  convinced 
ourselves  that  we  were  right;  for  we  could 

7 


98  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

plainly  see  them  walking  along  tied  together. 
We  kept  our  eyes  upon  them,  and  in  two  hun- 
dred yards  we  came  upon  two  old  buffalo  bones, 
which  the  mirage  had .  loomed  up  into  large 
objects.  We  then  saw  how  mirage  could  de- 
ceive, especially  when  aided  by  imagination. 

The  walk  would  have  been  nothing  if  we  could 
have  had  water;  but  I  tell  you  we  were  pretty 
well  dried  out  when  a  little  after  sunset  we  came 
among  the  Bear  Creek  hills.  A  little  stream 
came  crystalling  down  from  a  spring  away  up  in 
the  bluff;  and  after  drinking  of  its  beautiful 
waters  and  taking  a  good  wash,  we  looked 
around  for  the  horses,  knowing  that  if  they  had 
struck  the  creek  they  would  not  leave  the  water 
for  several  hours  at  least.  Anxious  to  intercept 
their  further  travel  to  the  north,  we  went  up 
and  down  the  creek  by  the  moonlight  for  several 
miles  ;  but  no  horses. 

We  came  upon  an  old  picket  cow-ranch  among 
the  hills,  and  concluded  to  stop  there  until 
morning.  We  were  met  at  the  door  by  three  or 
four  skunks,  which  in  spite  cf  our  friendly  salute 
opened  a  double-barrel  fire  upon  us  with  their 
heads  the  other  way.  They  were  very  obstinate, 
and  we  were  compelled  to  kill  them.  We  then 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  99 

had  control  of  the  shanty,  which  smelled  like  a 
reservoir  of  cologne  for  the  rest  of  the  night. 
There  was  a  little  stone  fireplace  in  one  end  of 
the  house,  and  we  built  a  lire  to  keep  away  the 
wolves  and  skunks.  We  had  no  blankets,  but  were 
doing  very  well,  when  about  eleven  o'clock  the 
wind  arose  and  it  turned  cold.  We  then  needed 
a  fire ;  but  the  little  trees  were  mostly  green,  and 
there  was  no  loose  wood,  and  we  had  no  ax. 
There  were  two  holes  for  windows  and  a  big 
place  for  a  door,  and  these  being  open  the  cold 
wind  went  howling  through  our  house  like  a 
breeze  from  the  north  pole.  The  house  was 
made  with  poles  put  in  the  ground  close  to- 
gether, and  we  began  at  the  door  to  tear  out  the 
posts  for  fuel.  The  wind  blew  colder  and  colder, 
and  toward  morning  a  light  snow  fell.  There 
was  very  little  of  the  house  left  when  the  morning 
dawned,  and  we  could  not  help  thinking  of  the 
man  along  the  Arkansas  who  was  living  in  the 
house  that  belonged  to  our  doors.  We  had  not 
seen  any  game,  so  a  biscuit  was  our  breakfast. 
"W e  felt  first-rate,  but  one  of  my  feet  being  one 
blister  from  heel  to  toe,  and  the  other  terribly 
rubbed,  a  long  walk  was  to  me  a  little  disagree- 
able; and  I  determined  to  patronize  the  first 
shoe-maker  I  crossed. 


100  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

The  morning  was  very  cool,  and  we  thought 
it  best  for  Dave  to  return  to  the  wagon  at  Bear 
Creek,  and  I  would  go  to  the  river ;  and  if  our 
team  had  not  come  up  there  I  was  to  buy  anoth- 
er and  return.  I  had  torn  the  sleeves  from  my 
coat,  and  Dave  had  given  me  a  large  handker- 
chief. With  these  I  wrapped  my  feet;  but 
they  were  so  terribly  sore  and  swelled  that  I 
could  scarcely  stand.  Dave  dashed  to  the  south 
with  his  compass  in  one  hand  and  his  rifle  in 
the  other,  and  I  hobbled  to  the  north.  I  broke 
myself  two  canes;  and  after  I  got  warmed  up  I 
flew  rapidly  along,  and  came  into  Granada  at 
nine  o'clock.  I  found  out  that  day  that  our 
horses  had  not  been  seen;  so  in  the  evening  I 
bought  two  good  ponies,  and  in  the  morning 
started  for  Bear  Creek.  A  little  before  sunset  I 
came  among  the  hills,  and  struck  the  creek  a 
mile  below  the  wagon.  On  my  way  up  I  came 
upon  Dave  in  a  deep  ravine,  roasting  a  piece  of 
a  deer  he  had  killed.  I  brought  a  quart  of  pep- 
per-sauce along  down  from  Granada,  and  this, 
with  a  good  square  mess  of  roast  venison,  made 
us  feel  first-rate.  We  sat  around  the  fire  talk- 
ing and  chatting  and  broiling  venison  most  of 
the  night;  and  there  was  not  much  of  the  deer- 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  101 

saddle  left  in  the  morning.  We  then  hooked 
up  our  ponies ;  and  though  they  were  a  little 
ivild,  we  went  prancing  along  for  the  Cimaron. 
We  came  into  camp  at  sunset  and  found  the 
boys  well,  but  very  uneasy  lest  we  had  lost  our 
compass  and  become  bewildered,  or  had  been 
cut  oft'  by  the  Indians.  We  had  exchanged 
teams,  and  had  a  great  deal  of  promiscuous 
experience  since  we  parted ;  and  this,  with  the 
story  of  the  cupboard,  furnished  enough  narra- 
tive with  which  to  interest  John  and  Charles 
the  greater  part  of  the  night.  Charles  said  it 
was  all  right  to  take  the  doors  if  there  were  no 
ready-made  cupboard  in  the  house ;  otherwise,  it 
was  a  sin  (in  Colorado).  We  spread  our  blank- 
ets and  lay  down  late  in  the  night,  and  slept 
sweetly.  We  arose  at  the  dawning  of  the  morn, 
and  after  a  good  mess  of  buftalo-meat,  with  nice 
warm  biscuits,  we  went  out  in  the  soft  morning 
air.  As  we  stood  upon  the  hill-side  at  the 
river's  edge,  the  zephyrs  fanned  us  like  the 
breath  of  heaven  ;  and  the  sun,  as  it  rolled  from 
the  eastern  sky,  appeared  to  us  more  majestic 
than  ever  before.  Away  down  the  valley  we 
could  see  the  buffaloes  feeding  upon  the  rich 
pasture ;  and  upon  the  brow  of  a  hill  to  the 


102 


ROMSPERT  S    TRAVELS 


south  were  two  large  wolves,  feasting  upon  an 
antelope  they  had  just  killed.  In  our  native 
Ohio  we  had  seen  the  buffalo  behind  the  strong 
high  fence,  and  the  wolf  in  the  iron  cage  ;  but 
here  they  were  with  their  wild  neighbors  in  the 
garden  of  nature,  ruminating  in  the  free,  open  air. 
The  scene  was  striking ;  and  it  was  all  natural; 
the  hand  of  man  had  not  figured  there  ;  and 
though  far  from  civilization,  we  felt  happy,  and 
the  Cimaron  waters  appeared  to  smile  upon  us 
as  they  hurried  by. 

We  spent  a  few  days  in  exploring  the  sur- 
rounding country,  and  went  far  up  and  down 
the  river  acquainting  ourselves  with  the  hills  and 
valleys. 

The  hide  season  was  now  here,  and  being  well 
prepared,  we  expected  to  take  many  a  pelt,  and 
have  lots  of  sport.  We  had  prepared  ourselves 
with  a  great  many  little  pegs,  and  with  these 
we  pinned  to  the  ground,  flesh  side  up,  the 
hides  that  we  gathered,  until  the  hill-side  in 
front  of  our  door  was  pretty  well  covered. 
Every  now  and  then  we  met  a  brother  hunter 
upon  the  plains;  and  with  him  we  had  many 
a  pleasant  chat,  and  learned  the  history  of  the 
country  from  the  present  back  through  many 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  103 

years.  It  is  interesting  to  listen  to  the  tales  of 
the  old  hunters  who  roamed  the  wild  prairie 
thirty  years  ago,  and  who  have  ever  since  neigh- 
bored with  wild  animals  and  savages,  and 
reaped  a  livelihood  from  the  western  wilds. 
They  say  that  many  years  ago,  when  they  first 
came  to  the  country,  if  a  person  were  upon  a 
slight  elevation  when  the  herd  was  passing  by, 
the  valley  would  be  covered  with  buffaloes  as  far' 
as  the  eye  could  reach,  rendering  the  whole 
country  a  dark,  moving  mass,  and  compelling 
the  Forty-niners  en-route  for  California  to  stop 
over  for  whole  days,  until  the  herd  crossed  over. 
Though  there  were  small  herds  of  thirty  and 
forty  moving  in  all  directions,  the  main  herd 
moved  in  a  body,  and  unlike  cattle,  kept  closely 
together.  Before  the  time  of  railroads  through 
the  West,  they  used  to  Jiim't  all  winter  and  dry 
the  hides,  and  haul  them  east  in  the  spring,  mak- 
ing large  profits.  But  when  the  Kansas  Pacific, 
Union  Pacific,  and  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa 
Fe  railroads  were  built,  the  buffaloes  were  very 
plenty;  and  meat  being  in  good  demand,  and 
having  an  outlet  for  the  shipment  of  hides,  great 
numbers  of  hunters  swarmed  the  prairie,  and  the 
slaughter  of  the  animal  was  wholesale.  Good 


104  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

robe  hides  then  being  worth  four  and  five  dol- 
lars, the  animal,  rich  and  delicious,  and  for 
which  many  a  poor  eastern  family  would  be 
thankful,  after  being  stripped  of  its  winding- 
sheet,  was  left  to  decay  in  the  sun  or  be  de- 
voured by  the  howling  wolves.  They  say  they 
used  to  lie  down  upon  the  prairie  and  shoot;  and 
the  longer  they  shot,  and  the  more  they  killed, 
the  thicker  they  came  around ;  and  they  often 
found  it  necessary  to  get  out  of  the  way  to  keep 
themselves  from  being  trampled  into  the  earth. 
In  this  way  they  were  slaughtered  by  thousands. 
The  number  became  rapidly  reduced,  until  to-day 
the  main  herd  consists  of  but  a  few  thousands, 
and  small  herds  of  twenty  and  thirty  wander 
here  and  there,  reclining  upon  the  soft  plain  and 
nipping  the  rich  grass  from  the  hills  that  once 
echoed  the  bellowings  of  the  innumerable  herd. 
The  great  numbers  spoken  of  somewhat  startled 
us,  and  sounded  more  like  a  fable  than  a  pleasant 
story ;  but  when  we  traveled  over  the  plains  and 
saw  sometimes  fifty  and  sixty  skeletons  almost 
on  a  heap,  and  whole  acres  almost  covered  with 
bones  whitening  in  the  sun,  and  sometimes  being 
able  to  j  ump  from  one  buffalo-head  to  another 
for  several  hundred  yards  (especially  in  the 


THROUGH  THE   WEST.  105 

Republican  Valley),  we  were  persuaded  to  believe 
what  we  were  told. 

Upon  reflection,  it  seems  a  sin  that  these  ani- 
mals were  shot  down  in  such  great  numbers  only 
for  the  pelts,  and  so  much  of  the  best  meat  in 
the  world  left  to  waste  in  the  sun  or  be  devoured 
by  the  wild,  carnivorous  animals  of  the  prairie ; 
but  the  truth  is,  no  cattle  or  sheep  could  be 
raised  or  any  use  made  of  the  country  so  long  as 
these  mighty  herds  continued  to  trample  it.  The 
hunters  say  they  used  to  start  out  in  the  morn- 
ing without  a  cent  in  their  pockets,  and  at  night 
they  would  often  have  pelts  enough,  together 
with  the  meat  they  found  sale  for  along  the  rail- 
road, to  pay  them  seventy-five  or  one  hundred 
dollars,  which  they  would  gamble  and  drink 
away  before  morning,  very  often.  "Ah  !  "  say 
they,  "  we  have  been  here  many  years,  and  have 
spent  many  a  fortune  in  the  vile  dens  so  numer- 
ous in  the  West ;  but  the  great  herds  have  now 
almost  faded  away,  and  instead  of  having  plen- 
ty, as  we  might  have,  we  are  now  poor  men, 
wandering  over  the  plains  for  a  living?' 

It  used  to  be  very  dangerous  to  be  in  the  way 
when  they  were  upon  a  stampede,  for  they  were 
as  irresistible  as  the  ocean  wave ;  and  it  is  said 


106  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

that  more  than  one  outfit,  horses  and  all,  haa 
been  trod  into  the  dust  by  the  trampling 
thousands  that  made  the  valleys  roar.  But 
stampedes  have  for  some  years  ceased  to  be  very 
dangerous,  and  buffalo -hunting  has  for  some 
time  been  a  science,  and  is  practiced  as  follows : 
A  person  or  company,  with  teams,  saddle-ponies, 
ammunition,  and  provisions,  go  out  to  where 
the  buffaloes  range,  and  there  make  a  head- 
quarter camp, — usually  a  dug-out,  for  timber  is 
scarce, — and  there  unload.  When  the  herd  is 
killed  and  frightened  away  from  camp,  one  or 
two  stay  in  camp  to  watch  over  what  is  left 
there  and  the  rest  start  out  with  wagons  in  the 
following  order:  The  hunter  has  a  big  cartridge- 
rifle, — usually  a  one-hundred-grain  Sharpe,  or 
one  hundred  and  twenty  grains,  which  is  called 
a  big  fifty, — fifty  caliber.  These  guns  weigh 
from  twelve  to  eighteen  pounds,  and  carry  from 
a  mile  and  a  half  to  two  miles.  He  also  has  a 
large  belt,  with  loops  to  hold  forty  or  fifty  car- 
tridges, and  a  good  knife.  One  man  usually 
does  the  shooting  for  the  outfit,  though  two 
sometimes  go  together.  The  skinner  or  skin- 
ners, with  ammunition,  beds,  and  provisions, 
follow  with  the  wagon  or  wagons,  and  keep  just 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  10T 

in  sight  of  the  hunter.  "When  he  sees  a  herd 
he  crawls  and  creeps  until  he  is  within  shooting 
distance,  and  tires  down  the  leader.  The  herd 
will  not  fly  without  a  leader;  and  until  they 
have  a  new  one  selected  he  is  again  ready,  and 
downs  him.  Watching  his  chances,  and  being  a 
good  shot,  in  this  way  he  sometimes  succeeds  in 
getting  down  fifty  or  sixty  buffaloes.  One  man 
said  he  one  time  shot  down  one  hundred  and 
sixty  in  one  stand.  When  the  blood  begins  to 
flow  freely  the  herd  becomes  very  much  excited  ,- 
and  while  horning  the  wounded  ones  and  paw- 
ing in  the  blood,  with  tails  lashing  the  air,  and 
almost  deafening  you  with  their  bellowing,  it  is 
enough  to  terrify  an  inexperienced  hunter.  And 
any  person  who  has  been  there,  I  assure  you,, 
will  make  himself  just  as  scarce  as  possible  on 
such  occasions  ;  for  a  wounded  buffalo  '  is  very 
dangerous.  When  the  herd  leaves, — from  the 
hunter  ceasing  to  fire,  or  making  a  mis-shot, — 
the  skinners  come  up  and  go  to  work,  and  the 
hunter  follows  up  the  herd  on  foot  and  takes 
down  one  here  and  there,  and  tries  for  another 
stand ,  which  depends  very  much  upon  his  skill 
as  a  hunter.  Sometimes  this  chase  is  kept  up 
all  day,  and  the  hunter  has  no  success  until 


108  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

about  sundown,  when  they  have  become  some- 
what used  to  the  crack  of  the  rifle,  and  being 
tired  and  hungry  they  slacken  up;  and  while 
lighting  the  wounded  ones  the  hunter  gets  in  a 
few  good  shots,  and  right  there  loads  his  wag- 
ons. When  the  wagons  are  well  loaded  they 
start  for  camp  to  unload  the  hides  and  stretch 
them  out  to  dry.  Several  hundred  hides  being 
sometimes  stretched  out  at  one  camp,  it  presents 
quite  an  attractive  scene.  When  the  hides  are 
dry,  they  are  put  in  piles  of  ten  apiece,  and 
staked  and  tied  down.  In  the  spring  they  are 
hauled  to  market. 

Sometimes  the  meat  is  jerked,  which  is  done 
as  follows :  The  hump,  shoulder-clods,  and  sad- 
dles are  the  only  parts  used.  This  meat  is  cut 
in  strips  as  thick  as  a  man's  wrist,  and  after  be- 
ing seasoned  is  hung  upon  wooden  racks  in  the 
sun,  and  a  slow  fire  built  under  it  to  smoke ;  and 
in  about  two  days  it  is  jerked.  This  meat  can  be 
taken  to  the  mountains  in  the  spring  and  sold 
readily  for  fifteen  and  twenty  cents  per  pound. 
This  is  the  way  it  is  done;  and  when  the  herd 
changes  its  range,  as  it  often  does,  you  must  then 
pull  up  and  follow,  and  again  locate;  though 
you  can  hunt  from  one  hundred  to  one  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  around  one  camp. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  109 

There  is  now  another  hunt;  and  that  is  the 
wolf-hunt.  This  is  done  with  strychnine.  When 
you  first  come  into  a  country  (before  there  are  so 
many  carcasses),  just  kill  an  antelope  or  buffalo, 
and  while  the  meat  is  warm  cut  out  several 
hundred  baits,  an  inch  square,  perforate  them 
and  put  in  a  little  of  the  poison,  and  give  the 
meat  a  little  rubbing.  Now  put  the  baits  in  a  sack, 
and  after  tying  one  end  of  your  picket-rope  to 
the  horn  of  your  saddle  and  the  other  end  round 
a  large  piece  of  the  meat,  start  upon  a  six  or 
eight  mile  circle  around  the  carcass,  dragging 
the  fresh  meat,  and  dropping  a  bait  every  one 
hundred  yards.  In  some  parts  of  the  plains,  es- 
pecially along  little  waters,  the  wolves  and 
skunks  are  very  numerous;  and  after  sunset 
they  can  be  heard  howling  in  every  direction, 
and  they  hurry  to  the  newly-spilled  blood. 
"When  they  strike  the  circle  where  the  meat  has 
been  dragged  they  will  start  around  upon  it, 
picking  up  the  baits,  a"nd  dropping  at  about  the 
second.  In  the  morning  the  hunter  mounts  his 
pony  and  starts  round  his  circle,  skinning  the 
wolves  and  skunks,  and  often  has  a  pony-load  of 
pelts  from  wolves,  skunks,  badgers,  swifts,  etc. 
The  wolf-hides  are  worth  two  dollars  and  fifty 


110  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

•cents  apiece,  and  the  bounty  is  from  fifty  cents 
to  five  dollars  a  head — according  to  the  county. 
Skunks  are  worth  forty-five  cents,  and  badger 
and  swift  hides  are  worth  forty  cents  apiece. 
There  is  much  to  be  made  at  this  business ;  and 
being  well  prepared  for  the  full  catalogue  of 
prairie  sports,  we  cast  our  baits  and  shot  our 
game. 

We  had  very  comfortable  quarters  upon  the 
Cimaron,  and  the  game  was  also  plenty  here. 
The  country  upon  either  side  of  the  river,  for  a 
half  mile  to  the  north  and  south,  was  very 
rough ;  and  in  these  deep  gulches  and  pretty  ra- 
vines many  a  buffalo,  deer,  and  antelope  breathed 
out  his  last. 

J  ust  after  twilight  one  night  in  December  we 
were  all  in  camp  at  head-quarters  when  a  great 
light  to  the  north  attracted  our  attention.  The 
whole  northern  sky  suddenly  turned  red,  and 
the  heavens  were  lighted  up  as  with  the  light- 
ning's glare.  Brighter  and  brighter  it  grew 
until  the  sight  was  grand  beyond  all  description. 
The  very  air  began  to  turn  warm,  and  the  gale 
that  blew  from  the  north  brought  with  it  great 
clouds  of  smoke.  At  length  the  forked  tongues 
of  the  flames  began  to  dart  up  from  behind  the 


4  • 


THROUGH   THE    WEST. 


Ill 


Bear  Creek  bluffs,  thirty  miles  away,  and  soon 
the  whole  country,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach 


to  the  west  and  far  to/the  east,  was  in  a  flame. 
The  grass  was  thick  and-  tolerably  high,  and  the 


112 


flames  rolled  over  the  level  prairie  like  a  tide 
upon  the  ocean  and  with  mighty  velocity.  We 
set  fire  to  the  grass  upon  the  south  side  of  the 
river,  and  with  a  roar  it  disappeared  over  the 
hills.  We  then  rushed  our  teams  and  wagons 
across  the  stream  upon  the  burned  space  and 
watched  the  oncome.  The  thirty  miles  were 
skimmed  in  a  short  time,  and  buffaloes,  deer, 
antelopes,  and  wolves  came  in  a  tumultuous 
throng,  howling  and  bellowing,  with  the  fire 
close  in  the  rear.  On  came  the  conflagration, 
leaping,  whizzing,  and  roaring  like  thunder; 
and  it  was  a  sight  to  see  the  animals  plunge  pre- 
cipitately into  the  stream.  Now  and  then  an 
old,  shaggy  wolf  would  be  outrun  by  the  flames, 
and  when  the  hair  began  to  singe  such  howling 
was  never  heard.  The  heat  was  so  intense  that 
but  few  animals  got  through  the  blaze  alive,  and 
they  were  left  in  the  hot  ashes,  and  came  out 
pretty  well  singed  and  sore.  The  cattle  of  the 
vicinity  ran  frantic  in  every  direction,  and  some 
were  suffocated.  Our  rich,  golden  range  was 
now  blackened  ;  and  there  was  no  pasture  in  the 
surrounding  country  except  the  short,  green 
grass  in  the  valley.  We  were  now  compelled  to 
follow  the  animals  to  the  land  of  pasture.  The 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  113 

cow-men  and  hunters  turned  out,  and  the  fire 
was  extinguished  in  the  sand-hills  of  New  Mex- 
ico, but  a  few  miles  to  the  south  of  us.  This 
was  the  first  real  prairie-fire  we  had  yet  seen, 
and  it  being  at  night  added  greatly  to  its 
splendor. 

It  is  a  penitentiary  offense  in  that  country  to 
willfully  fire  the  prairie,  and  the  stock-men  sel- 
dom make  much  court  expense  when  the  scoun- 
drel is  found.  Their  proceedings  are  very  sum- 
mary, and  the  prisoner  is  never  again  guilty  of 
the  same  offense — in  this  world.  The  Indians 
often  do  it  to  destroy  the  pasture  in  other  quar- 
ters and  drive  the  game  to  their  grounds ;  and 
for  it  many  a  red-skin  has  soared  to  the  happy 
hunting-ground  upon  the  wings  of  death. 

It  is  unlawful  for  white  men  to  kill  more 
meat  in  the  Indian  Territory  than  just  what  is 
needed  for  immediate  use,  under  penalty  of  the 
confiscation  of  all  they  have.  This  is  watch- 
ed over  by  the  government  authorities  stationed 
there.  However,  the  fire  had  not  reached  the 
territory,  and  there  were  great  herds  of  buffaloes 
upon  their  rich  pasture;  and  we  cautiously  made 
this  part  our  range. 

8 


114 


Our  first  trip  after  the  fire  was  to  the  east.  So, 
fixing  that  cupboard  in  the  wagon,  and  taking 
enough  flour  for  biscuits  for  several  days,  we  left 
Dave  and  John  in  camp,  and  Charles  and  myself 
wound  down  the  green  valley  for  the  unburned 
regions.  In  about  five  miles  we  came  upon  past- 
ure, and  camped  for  the  night  upon  the  river- 
bank,  full  twenty-five  miles  from  head-quar- 
ters. This  brought  us  about  to  the  Kansas 
line.  It  was  a  beautiful  night,  and  almost  as 
light  as  day.  The  wolves  were  so  numerous 
and  bold  that  we  were  compelled  to  sleep  by  the 
fire,  and  about  twelve  o'clock  they  came  into  the 
very  camp  and  tackled  the  big  blood-hound  that 
we  always  had  with  the  wagon.  Unfortunately 
for  one  of  the  trespassers,  old  Lee  sunk  his  fangs 
into  his  neck  and  never  loosed  his  hold  until  he 
was  dead.  The  horses  were  frightened  all  night; 
and  Charles  said  he  expected  we  were  just  upon 

the  spot  where  the  whole  d n  pack  slept 

every  night.  We  stripped  off  several  pelts  in 
the  morning ;  and  when  the  sun  was  high  we 
started  north  for  the  ten-mile  arroyo  of  which 
we  had  heard  old  hunters  speak.  We  had  only 
gone  a  little  way  when  we  met  an  old  bull  com- 
ing quietly  down  a  ravine  toward  the  river ;  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  115 

after  riding  to  the  top  of  a  hill  and  finding  no 
herd  to  be  near,  I  concluded  to  give  him  a  chase. 
I  got  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  him,  when  he 
saw  me  and  started  back  north.  This  was  a  sign 
of  a  herd;  and  knowing  that  if  he  would  reach 
it  he  would  stampede  the  whole  herd,  I  rode 
upon  him  with  all  the  speed  that  my  mustang 
could  summon.  He  was  a  perfect  racer;  but  in 
spite  of  his  eflorte  I  came  alongside  of  him,  and 
the  second  ball  from  my  Smith  &  Wesson 
stretched  him  struggling  upon  the  earth  with  a 
bullet  through  his  lungs.  When  the  wagon 
came  up  we  skinned  him  and  took  the  meat  we 
wanted  and  drove  on,  expecting  soon  to  come 
upon  a  herd.  The  breaks  of  Ten-Mile  Creek  began 
to  ruffle  the  smooth  surface,  and  we  saw  a  small 
bunch  of  buffaloes  feeding  in  a  gulch.  We  came 
into  a  narrow,  deep  ravine,  and  through  this  we 
drove  the  team,  cautiously  circling  to  the  north. 
I  crawled  to  the  top  of  the  ravine  among  the 
high  grass,  and  there,  not  more  than  three  hun- 
dred yards  from  me,  was  a  herd  of  at  least  two 
thousand,  some  ruminating,  and  some  feeding 
upon  a  high  table-land  about  half  a  mile  in  di- 
ameter, and  which  was  nearly  surrounded  by  the 
deep  ravine  we  were  in.  It  was  now  near  sun- 


116  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

down,  and  after  carefully  circling  the  herd,  we 
camped  upon  the  west  and  to  the  leeward  of 
them.  After  carefully  fastening  the  horses,  and 
commanding  Lee  to  stay  with  the  wagon,  we 
crawled  up  among  the  grass  for  action.  They 
were  just  two  hundred  yards  off  and  we  were 
ready,  and  the  battle  opened  with  the  roar  of 
two  one-hundred-grain  guns.  My  animal  came 
to  its  knees  with  a  broken  shoulder,  and 
Charley's  dropped  in  its  tracks  without  a  strug- 
gle. After  a  few  rounds  we  had  the  blood 
started  freely,  and  the  tracking  of  the  rifles  was 
drowned  in  the  mighty  bellowing.  We  crept  up 
closer  and  closer,  until  Charles  darted  behind 
the  bull  that  he  had  first  shot,  intending  to  use 
him  for  a  rest.  We  were  fifty  yards  apart,  and 
at  the  first  shot  that  Charles  took  from  his  new 
fort,  he  was  surprised  to  see  the  bull  spring  to 
his  feet  and  make  fight.  His  gun  was  empty 
and  the  bull  was  loaded ;  and  seeing  his  chances 
in  this  unequal  combat,  he  grabbed  the  bull  by 
the  tail  and  held  on  for  dear  life.  They  flew 
around  the  circle  at  the  rate  of  ninety  revolu- 
tions per  minute ;  the  bull  bellowing  and  froth- 
ing, and  Charles  flying  around  with  his  bare 
head,  calling  out  to  me  to  shoot  the  bull.  It  was 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  117 

so  darned  funny  to  see  a  buffalo  and  a  man  waltz 
together  that  I  could  not  do  anything  for  laugh- 
ing. I  knew  very  well  that  the  hind  end  of  a 
buffalo  was  not  dangerous,  and  I  was  just  as  sure 
that  Charley  would  never  let  go  of  the  tail.  So  I 
stood  there  for  several  minutes  enjoying  the 
circus.  Charles  drew  out  his  big  knife  and  tried 
to  strike  him  in  the  heart;  but  he  was  at  the 
wrong  end  for  that,  and  his  gouging  only  made 
the  bull  the  more  furious.  At  length  Charley 
began  to  swing  his  partner  a  little  slower,  and 
having  worked  down  into  the  ravine,  the  bull 
spied  the  wagon  and  made  toward  it  with  great 
fury.  Charles  called  out  for  Lee,  and  with  a 
dash  and  a  snap  he  had  his  teeth  firmly  fastened 
in  the  nose  of  the  bull.  Charles  was  now  re- 
lieved ;  and  quickly  thrusting  a  cartridge  into 
his  gun  he  lay  the  bull  bleeding  upon  the 
ground.  All  this  time  I  had  been  rolling  upon 
the  grass  laughing;  and  at  this  moment  I  heard  a 
bellow  and  a  loud  snort,  and  looking  around  I 
saw  a  wounded  buffalo  within  a  few  jumps  of 
me.  The  tail  was  the  other  way,  and  knowing 
my  chances  to  be  few,  I  grabbed  my  rifle,  and 
resting  upon  my  knee,  I  let  him  come  so  close 
that  I  could  see  his  eyes  bat, — knowing  the 


118 


skull  to  be  very  thick, — and  fired.  The  ball 
pierced  the  mighty  skull,  and  the  blood  spurted 
as  he  plunged  forward  dead.  I  looked  out  from 
behind  the  hill  to  see  if  Charley  was  preparing 
to  shoot  me  when  I  came  in ;  and  when  I  saw 
him  sitting  upon  the  wagon  fanning  himself  with 
his  hat,  I  ventured  up.  He  commenced  on  me 
in  the  Colorado  dialect ;  but  he  was  puffing  and 
blowing,  and  having  the  advantage  of  him  I  did 
the  talking  to  suit  myself.  I  told  him  I  thought 
any  person  who  had  the  power  to  raise  the  dead 
ought  to  be  able  to  kill  it  again  ;  and  besides,  he 
slung  the  bull  around  so  darned  fast  that  I  could 
not  shoot  with  safety. 

Well,  the  darkness  began  to  thicken  all  over 
the  country,  and  we  concluded  not  to  shoot  any 
more  that  night.  We  found  an  old  well  in  the 
ravine,  and  dug  it  several  feet  deeper,  but  found 
no  water.  From  what  we  had  heard  hunters 
say,  we  expected  to  find  water  here,  and  had 
brought  none  along,  so  that  ours  that  night  was- 
a  dry  camp.  We  skinned  and  cut  up  four  of  the 
buffaloes  that  night,  and  taking  some  of  the 
fresh  meat  we  heated  it  up  a  little  in  the  frying- 
pan,  leaving  the  juice  in  it;  and  a  supper  of  this 
did  vei*y  well,  so  we  retired  for  the  night.  The 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  119 

wolves  were  howling  in  every  direction,  and 
hurrying  to  the  fresh  blood ;  and  the  snorting 
and  bellowing  of  the  buffaloes  could  be  heard 
away  in  the  night.  Up  to  twelve  o'clock  there 
was  not  a  cloud  in  the  sky ;  but  at  that  time  a 
purple  veil  was  drawn  across  the  heavens  almost 
as  quick  as  thought,  and  the  wind  began  to  blow 
cold.  We  had  a  good  bed,  and  placing  two  of 
our  green  hides  upon  the  ground  flesh  sides  to- 
gether, we  built  upon  them,  and  in  spite  of  the. 
cold  kept  comfortable. 

Toward  morning  the  gale  increased,  and  at 
daylight  we  were  in  the  midst  of  a  blizzard. 
This  is  a  heavy  gale  in  which  sharp  ice,  as  fine  as 
salt,  falls  so  thickly  that  yoa  can  not  see  two 
feet  ahead ;  and  it  is  not  safe  to  leave  camp 
twenty  steps  without  a  rope  around  the  waist. 
We  were  in  a  deep  ravine ;  and  having  tied  the 
horses  to  the  wagon  they  were  somewhat  shel- 
tered ;  then  throwing  a  robe  over  the  dog,  we  lay 
quietly  in  our  snug  bed.  The  tempest  raged  and 
roared  over  the  plain  all  that  day,  and  the  snow 
fell,  more  or  less,  continually.  Twilight  began 
to  gather,  and  the  storm  was  still  howling.  We 
had  nothing  to  eat  that  day,  but  we  had 
quenched  our  thirst  with  snow  and  felt  very 


120 


well.  Morning  came,  and  it  was  yet  too  cold  to 
live;  and  the  blizzard  had  renewed  its  fury.  We 
had  brought  a  little  corn  along,  to  feed  in  &  pinch; 
but  this  was  a  bigger  pinch  than  we  had  bar- 
gained for,  and  our  horses  began  to  look  pretty 
hollow.  About  noon  the  snow  ceased  falling; 
but  the  wind  was  as  cold  as  ice  and  past  all  en- 
durance. At  sundown  we  crawled  from  our  re- 
treat, and  found  the  snow  a  foot  in  depth  over 
all  the  prairie.  We  shoveled  it  away  from  the 
side  of  a  ledge,  and  trimming  down  a  few  hack- 
berry  bushes  that  grew  upon  the  side  of  a  bluff, 
we  started  a  fire.  They  were  green,  and  burned 
very  poorly;  but  the  buffalo-chips  were  all  cov- 
ered, and  it  was  the  best  we  had.  Our  meat  was 
like  stone ;  and  for  supper  we  chopped  it  off  with 
the  ax.  We  did  not  fry  it  much,  but  it  was 
good  any  how.  We  also  melted  a  little  snow  for 
the  horses,  and  after  giving  them  the  last  corn 
we  had,  we  crept  into  bed. 

In  the  morning  the  wind  had  lulled  and  a 
thick  fog  hung  like  night  over  the  face  of  the 
plain.  We  could  not  see  each  other  fifty  yards 
away.  We  thought  it  necessary,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, to  make  for  head-quarters,  and  leave 
to  the  wolves  the  six  buffaloes  that  we  had  not 
skinned,  and  which  were  now  like  stones. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  121 

Having  broken  our  compass  in  bed,  and  the 
two  buttes  in  southern  Colorado — which  guide 
the  hunters  and  herders  of  the  country — being 
hidden  in  the  mist,  we  were  left  with  our  un- 
aided ability  to  steer  our  way.  We  took  the 
Indian  way  of  ranging  objects  on  ahead ;  but  the 
snow  was  deep  and  the  objects  few,  and  about 
nine  o'clock  we  came  across  the  track  of  an  outfit 
which,  from  the  number  of  horse-tracks  and  the 
^dog's  trail,  we  knew  to  be  our  own.  Well,  we 
followed  it  back,  and  soon  came  into  the  old 
camp  and  stopped  for  the  night. 

In  the  morning  it  was  clear,  and  the  sun  shone 
out  brightly;  and  the  reflection  almost  blinded 
us  as  we  went  along.  The  team  was  very  lank, 
and  worried  slowly  through  the  snow.  About 
noon  we  came  into  the  Cimaron  valley,  and 
after  watering,  plodded  on  without  unhitching. 
At  sundown  WQ  saw  smoke  coming  from  the 
hill-side  away  up  the  valley,  but  in  spite  of  our 
efforts  it  was  dark  when  we  came  in.  There 
were  plenty  of  provisions  and  lots  of  fuel,  and 
we  had  a  social  that  night.  It  took  Charles  a 
long  time  to  relate  his  experience  with  the  buf- 
falo, and  the  boys  plagued  him  a  great  deal 
about  trying  to  kill  a  bull  with  its  own  tail. 


122  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

The  next  morning  the  sun  again  arose  in  a 
cloudless  sky  and  darted  his  warm  rays  upon  the 
face  of  the  snow-covered  plain,  and  the  white 
veil  soon  melted  away.  It  took  the  horses  sev- 
eral days  to  recruit,  and  the  short,  green  grass 
in  the  valley  filled  them  out  slowly.  We  pegged 
our  green  hides  in  the  sun  to  dry;  and  having  a 
load  of  saddles,  humps,  and  tongues,  we  pre- 
pared to  take  a  trip  to  the  Arkansas. 

One  pretty  morning  John  and  myself  started, 
with  the  load,  and  left  Dave  and  Charles  in 
camp.  We  stopped  at  Bear  Creek  for  the  night ; 
and  directly  after  striking  camp  we  had  our  at- 
tention attracted  to  a  singular-looking  object 
upon  the  side  of  the  bluff  away  down  the  creek. 
We  took  out  the  glass,  and  it  looked  like  a  roll 
of  buffalo-hides.  After  supper  we  picketed  the 
horses,  and  taking  our  rifles,  we  strolled  down 
the  creek  to  investigate  the  curious  object. 
Coming  up  to  it  we  found  it  to  be  a  buffalo-hide 
rolled  up;  and  peeping  in  at  one  end  we  saw  a 
man.  The  hide  was  taken  from  an  old  bull,  and 
was  almost  an  inch  thick;  and  being  frozen,  it 
was  as  much  as  we  could  do  to  cut  him  from  his 
narrow  prison-walls.  He  was  a  middle-aged  man, 
and  was  almost  exhausted ;  but  we  took  him  to 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  128 

the  fire  and  gave  him  to  eat,  and  then  heard  his 
story.  He  said  he  was  a  cow-man  from  Texas? 
and  had  been  to  Granada  and  was  returning 
when  he  was  ingulfed  in  a  furious  blizzard  a  few 
miles  north  of  Bear  Creek.  He  said  he  had  but 
two  blankets,  and  having  no  matches,  he  knew 
he  must  perish ;  and  happening  to  see  a  stray 
bull  among  the  hills,  he  rode  on  to  him  and  shot 
him,  and  concluded  to  take  the  hide  to  wrap 
himself  in.  His  horse  broke  loose  while  he  was 
skinning  the  bull,  and  he  was  left  alone;  sor 
spreading  the  hide  upon  the  ground,  fur  side 
down,  he  spread  the  two  blankets  upon  it,  and 
then  lay  himself  upon  them  and  rolled  up  tight- 
ly. The  green  hide  froze,  and  he  was  as  securely 
incased  as  though  he  were  within  a  steel  boiler. 
He  had  been  there  five  days;  and  being  be- 
hind the  bluff  the  sun  had  not  reached  and  soft- 
ened the  hide.  He  said  he  had  kept  comfortable? 
with  the  exception  of  his  feet?  and  with  them  he 
had  suffered  a  great  deal.  Upon  investigation, 
they  were  both  found  to  be  frozen ;  and  we  took 
him  to  Las  Animas  to  the  doctor,  who  ampu- 
tated them  both  at  the  instep.  He  often  said 
that  a  man  without  toes  was  better  than  no  man? 
that  he  surelywould  have  perished  had  he  not 


124 


captured  the  buffalo,  and  that,  if  we  had  not 
found  him,  a  few  days  later  the  hide  would 
have  been  his  grave. 

We  found  ready  sale  for  our  meat,  and  were 
soon  steering  again  for  the  Circiaron.  We  came 
across  several  outfits,  each  of  which  had  been 
more  or  less  frozen  in  the  late  blizzard.  Some 
had  lost  fingers,  and  others  toes ;  and  we  heard 
of  one  whole  outfit  of  three  men,  north  of  the  Ar- 
kansas, freezing  to  death.  We  were  not  in  the 
least  injured,  and  we  congratulated  ourselves 
upon  our  being  prepared  with  a  good  bed. 

We  came  in  sight  of  camp  about  sundown, 
and  riding  ahead  and  seeing  no  one  about  the 
-camp,  I  concluded  to  try  the  boys ;  so,  riding 
up  over  the  hill,  I  came  down  upon  the  dug-out 
with  a  whoop,  and  fired  several  shots  from  my 
six-shooter  as  I  circled  to  the  east,  and  lying  flat 
upon  the  pony  I  shot  down  a  ravine  just  in  front 
of  the  dug-out,  my  back  being  all  that  could  be 
seen.  Whiz!  went  a  bullet  just  over  my  back- 
bone; and  I  was  satisfied  that  the  boys  were  not 
asleep,  and  that  they  could  shoot  pretty  well  too. 
So  I  dismounted  at  a  place  in  the  gulch  where 
my  horse  was  hidden,  and  taking  a  white  hand- 
kerchief I  raised  it  to  view  to  try  the  boys ;  but 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  125 

white  flag  or  no  white  flag,  the  two  old  black 
gun-barrels  lay  up  alongside  of  the  cave  doorr 
and  there  was  no  such  thing  as  a  flag  of  truce 
taking  them  down.  I  was  a  hundred  yards  off, 
and  I  swear  I  was  afraid  to  put  up  my  head  to 
make  myself  known.  At  length  they  saw  the 
team  coming,  and  knowing  my  disposition,  they 
then  mistrusted  that  it  waa  me  in  the  ravine. 
When  I  was  sure  that  the  boys  knew  who  I  was, 
I  mounted  my  poney  and  rode  into  camp.  The 
boys  acknowledged  that  I  had  completely  deceived 
them,  and  that  they  took  me  for  an  Indian  rid- 
ing down  there  to  draw  them  out,  and  then  a 
whole  band  would  fire  upon  them  from  every 
bill.  Dave  said  he  had  done  his  finest  to  hit  me 
on  the  wing,  but  he  could  see  nothing  but  my 
back,  and  that  went  down  the  ravine  as  swift  as  a 
cork  over  the  cataract  of  Niagara,  and  he  sup- 
posed he  shot  wild.  I  told  him  that  he  did  very 
well,  and  I  would  not  like  him  to  do  better  upon 
like  occasions.  Charley  said  he  would  like  to 
have  cut  a  suspender  off  anyhow,  just  to  give  me 
some  caution. 

We  hunted  for  many  miles  around,  including 
north-eastern  New  Mexico  and  the  "pan-handle" 
of  Texas.  We  had  the  hill-side  covered  with 


126  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

hides  for  some   distance;   and  game  becoming 
scarce,  we  concluded  to  pile  up  our  hides  and 
load  up  our  outfit  and  start  for  other  quarters. 
We  followed  the  Cimaron   down   into  Kansas ; 
and  just  before  we  went  into  the   territory  we 
came  on  to  a  large  herd  of  buffaloes,  and  killed 
enough  to  load  our  wagon  with  hides,  leaving 
the  rich,  delicious  meat  to  the  wolves.     We  fol- 
lowed the  river  into  the  territory,  and  one  even- 
ing a  government  officer  with  three  men   came 
out  from  Salt  Springs  to  our  camp;  for  we  had 
been  reported  killing  buffaloes  in  the  territory. 
The  officer  rode  up  insultingly,  and  without  any 
questions  began  to  abuse  us  and  call  us  trespass- 
ers and  thieves,   and  said  he  had  a  great  mind 
to  upset  the  wagon  and  burn  every  hide  we  had. 
We  told  him  we  had  not  killed  the  buffaloes  in 
the  territory.    But  he  continued  his  abuse;  and 
thinking  it  about  our  time  to  talk,  and  being  four 
egainst  four,  we  told  him  we  had  enough  talk 
now,  and  we  wanted  to  see  him  burn  the  hides. 
We  were  well  prepared;  and  seeing  his  position, 
he  rode  off  with  his  men — I   suppose  partially 
convinced  that  a  star  upon   the  breast  of  an 
abusive  scoundrel  does  not  enable  him  to  ride 
over  honest  men. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  127 

It  was  now  getting  late  in  the  season,  and  we 
concluded  to  haul  our  hides  to  market  and  travel 
over  the  south  during  the  summer.  We  left  the 
outfit  at  the  dug-out,  and  two  stayed  with  it  and 
the  other  two  hauled  hides.  We  took  up  two 
full  loads,  and  had  as  many  more  as  we  could 
haul  with  the  outfit  the  third  trip.  We  shipped 
them  to  Kansas  City  and  sold  them  well,  and 
struck  a  rich  dividend.  We  camped  up  and  down 
the  Arkansas,  fishing  and  occasionally  shooting  a 
deer  among  the  brush  along  the  river,  and  spend- 
ing some  time  moving  in  the  refined  society  of 
the  valley,  and  now  and  then  staying  a  little  late 
conversing  with  the  cultured  daughters  of  the 
ranchmen.  We  spent  many  pleasant  days  and 
evenings  thus ;  and  after  trimming  up  the  outfit 
carefully,  and  laying  in  a  good  supply  of  ammu- 
nition and  such  eatables  as  we  supposed  would 
be  needed  on  our  trip,  we  were  ready  to  start 
again  for  southern  sights. 


128 


CHAPTER    IY. 

Summer  Trip  Through  the  South— Indian  Agencies— Cana- 
dian River — Lion  Fight — Red  River — Double  Mountain — 
Staked  Plains— Pecos  River— Indian  Skirmish— Santa  Fe, 
New  Mexico— Return  to  the  Arkansas  Valley— Description 
of  the  Plains  —  Mirage  —  Dangers  of  the  Prairie— Wild 
Horses  and  How  Captured— Creasing  Animals. 

When  the  April  sun  of  1878  was  high  in  the 
heavens,  we  bid  farewell  to  our  valley  friends 
and  wound  merrily  down  the  river.  The  green 
grass  had  begun  to  show  itself,  and  the  valley 
was  lovely ;  and  the  little  birds  sported  and  sung 
in  the  bushes  and  little  trees  along  the  river- 
banks.  As  the  houses  became  more  and  more 
numerous,  we  began  to  realize  that  we  were  go- 
ing east  to  where  somebody  lived.  Following  the 
river  on  down,  we  passed  through  the  Creek  and 
Cherokee  agencies,  and  also  the  Chocktaw  country, 
and  were  very  much  interested  in  our  Indian  ob- 
servations. The  Cherokees  are  far  advanced  in 
civilization,  and  are  by  far  the  most  intelligent 
tribe. 

They  have  school-houses,  and  churches,  and 
pretty  villages;  and  some  have  carpet  upon 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  129 

their  floors.  They  appear  to  enjoy  their  new 
mode  of  living,  and  take  pride  in  their  pretty 
homes.  I  may  also  state  that  there  are  some 
very  pretty  girls  among  them.  All  the  agency 
lands  that  we  passed  through  were  the  best  that 
the  sun  ever  warmed.  Though  Uncle  Sam 
reaches  forth  his  bountiful  hand  whenever  the 
weakest  red  man  asks,  most  of  the  tribes  appear 
restless  ;  and  though  there  is  much  game  in  the 
territory,  and  notwithstanding  that  they  are  let 
out  of  the  agency  once  a  year  to  hunt  over  the 
wide  wild  country,  their  eyes  are  restless,  their 
faces  itch  for  the  war-paint,  and  they  long  to 
sally  forth  beneath  the  white-eagle  plume,  to 
ring  the  valleys  with  their  wild  war-whoop,  and 
wash  the  hatchet  in  the  white  man's  blood.  The 
farming  implements  furnished  them  are  left  to 
rust,  and  they  indolently  exist  upon  the  nation's 
bounty. 

Every  Indian  nation  in  the  United  States  to- 
day, who  will  receive  them,  have  beautiful  reser- 
vations, which  are  the  very  gardens  of  the  Union; 
and  their  every  want  is  most  bounteously  sup- 
plied. The  only  tribes  that  are  to-day  suffering 
are  those  who  will  not  receive  from  the  hand  of 
plenty.  But  in  spite  of  all  this,  there  are  some 


130  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

of  the  tribes  breaking  from  their  agencies  every 
few  months  and  committing  their  bloody  out- 
rages, which  boil  a  human's  Wood;  and  the 
clemency  of  the  Government  is  exhibited  by  its 
capturing  the  murderers  and  placing  them  back 
upon  their  homes,  giving  them  new  blankets 
and  rifles,  and  telling  them  not  to  do  so  again, — 
sometimes  giving  them  a  trial,  but  rarely  giving 
them  the  deserved  penalty.  Persons  seated  in 
their  comfortable  mansions  in  the  land  from 
whence  savagedom  has  long  since  been  driven, 
and  where  the  protecting  arm  of  civilization  is 
thrown  around  them,  are  prone  to  speak  of  the 
poor  Indian  eking  out  a  miserable  livelihood 
from  the  western  deserts  and  barren  mountains, 
and  continually  persecuted  and  provoked  by  the 
cruel  white  man,  only  waiting  for  an  opportunity 
to  kill  them  oft.  Oh, fie!  Go  see  what /have 
seen,  and  learn  the  truth,  and  your  sympathies 
will  be  banished  by  bitter  scorn.  Go  see  the  poor 
emigrant,  who  has  taken  his  little  family  to  a 
new  home  in  the  sundown  land,  shot  down  at 
his  labor  and  scalped  in  the  furrow,  his  dear 
wife  and  innocent  babes  crushed  with  the  hatchet, 
their  blood  spilled  upon  the  cabin  floor,  and 
their  brains  spattered  against  the  wall.  Go  ex- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST. 


131 


perience  realities,  and  have  your  all  and  dearest 
on  earth  torn  from  you,  and  hear  their  heart- 


rending cries  as  they  are  carried  off  by  savage 
demons,  and  see  how  the  red  devils  can  mock 


132 


mercy  and  torture  helpless  innocence;  and  if  the 
fire  within  your  bosom  does  not  kindle  and  you 
do  not  say  that  the  devils  have  it  only  too  good, 
there  must  be  little  soul  within.  God  knows 
that  /would  be  the  last  to  mention  violence;  but 
I  have  seen  decency  outraged  and  sweet  infancy 
tortured,  and  have  witnessed  so  many  sickening 
sights  that  my  blood  boils  whenever  I  think  of 
them  and  my  right  arm  twitches  for  vengeance. 
The  first  tribe  that  starts  a  war  should  be  made 
an  example  of,  and  the  last  wretch  laid  low  ;  then 
outbreaks  would  be  fewer.  As  it  is,  there  is- 
continually  trouble  all  along  the  frontier,  and  no 
man  is  safe.  If  the  Government  would  only 
empower  a  company  of  cow-boys  and  hunters  to 
pursue  them  when  out  on  the  war-path,  there 
would  be  less  damage  and  severer  reprimands; 
but  until  the  soldiers  capture  them,  with  their 
blue  ribbon  and  military  maneuvers,  the  devils 
have  done  all  the  mischief  they  want  to  do  and 
are  ready  to  surrender. 

The  Indians  all  appear  friendly ;  but  a  chance 
is  all  that  is  wanted  to  place  your  scalp  bleeding 
upon  a  pole  while  they  sing  their  bloody  songs 
around  it.  It  is  their  nature. 

"And  as  long  as  his  skin  is  rough  and  red, 
His  cruel  heart  is  the  devil's  bed." 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  133 

We  followed  the  river  to  its  junction  with  the 
Canadian.  This  is  a  most  splendid  country. 
Here  God  again  does  the  raining,  and  no  irriga- 
tion is  needed.  The  agencies  are  the  same.  We 
then  concluded  to  go  up  the  Canadian  to  the 
west.  It  was  not  long,  however,  until  we  had 
left  the  rich  farming  country  and  were  again 
upon  the  dry,  sandy  wilderness.  The  country 
for  some  distance  upon  either  side  of  the  river 
is  intensely  rough,  rocky,  barren,  and  sandy. 
Great  herds  of  cattle  range  along  the  river  and 
up  and  down  all  its  tributaries.  As  we  went  to 
the  west  trees  grew  few  and  scrubby  and  dwarf- 
bushes  grew  among  the  rocks  and  blufls,  and 
little  streams  of  clear  water  came  tumbling 
down  over  the  rocks  from  the  springs  away  un- 
der the  barren  hills.  We  often  thought  of  the 
mountains  as  we  wound  along,  and  we  thought 
we  must  be  near  the  jumping-oif  place.  We 
killed  several  deer  and  antelopes  among  the  hills, 
and  saw  some  strange-looking  tracks  in  the  sand 
at  the  water. 

Early  one  pretty  morning,  as  we  were  stroll- 
ing up  the  ravines  in  search  of  game,  I  noticed 
Charles  stop  suddenly,  and  dropping  behind  a 
rock  he  beckoned  me  to  him.  He  pointed  up 


134 


the  river  to  where  some  bushes  were  shaking; 
and  crawling  closer,  by  the  aid  of  our  glass  we 
found  it  to  be  a  large  lion  feasting  upon  the  car- 
cass of  a  deer.  We  crept  away,  and  after  gath- 
ering the  other  boys  we  held  a  council  and  de- 
termined to  tackle  him,  let  come  what  would. 
We  cautiously  crept  along  under  rocks  and 
brush  until  we  were  within  one  hundred  and 
fifty  yards  of  him,  when  he  spied  us,  and  utter- 
ing a  loud  roar,  crouched  low  upon  his  prey. 
Now  was  our  time ;  so,  resting  my  rifle  upon  a 
rock,  I  deliberately  fired.  He  was  almost  hidden 
in  the  brush,  and  I  struck  him  in  the  shoulder. 
He  uttered  a  terrible  roar,  and  bounded  toward 
us  with  his  shattered  blade.  We  had  shrunk 
from  the  lion  behind  the  bars;  but,  my  Lord, 
here  we  were  in  the  same  cage  with  him,  and  no 
chance  to  shrink.  I  tell  you,  a  lion  can  jump 
like  thunder  with  three  legs;  and  he  came  direct- 
ly at  me.  The  boys  were  flanked  upon  either 
side,  and  they  were  to  reserve  their  loads  until 
he  was  near  enough  to  be  sure.  I  waited  until 
I  could  see  his  eyes  bat,  and  he  was  about  to 
make  his  last  spring,  and  then  pulled ;  but,  great 
God !  the  cartridge  failed.  I  dodged  behind  a 
large  rock,  and  as  he  sprung  down  over  my 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  135 

head,  with  his  powerful  paws  extended  and  his 
great  claws  protruding  like  bayonets,  his  low 
growl  sounded  like  the  voice  of  hell ;  and 
though  things  looked  a  little  cloudy,  I  never 
conceded  for  one  moment  that  I  was  ever  created 
for  lion-meat.  The  blood-hound  sprung  forward 
and  sunk  his  huge  teeth  into  his  hind  leg;  but 
he  was  no  more  to  the  infuriated  animal  than  a 
gad-fly  would  be  to  a  buffalo,  and  before  I  could 
shove  a  new  cartridge  home  he  was  again 
crouched  to  spring,  when  the  boys  rushed  for- 
ward, and,  with  the  muzzles  of  their  rifles  so 
close  that  the  hair  was  singed,  sent  three  well- 
directed  balls  grinding  through  his  body.  The 
shots  all  went  near  the  heart,  and  he  never  arose 
from  the  earth,  but  rolled  over  upon  his  side, 
and  with  a  low,  gurgling  groan,  trembled  and 
died.  It  was  sport,  all  through;  but  I  e'njoyed 
this  stage  of  the  proceedings  better  than  any 
other.  As  he  lay  there,  with  his  nine  feet  of 
power  stretched  upon  the  sand  so  closely  to  me 
that  I  could  feel  his  dying-breath  and  touch  his 
shaggy  mane,  I  felt  happy  that  he  was  dead. 
Ho  was  nine  feet  in  length,  and  was  the  most 
powerful  lion  we  had  ever  seen.  Some  of  his 
teeth  were  two  inches  long ;  and  after  looking 


136  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

carefully  at  the  huge  mouth  and  powerful  jaws, 
I  concluded  that  I  was  at  one  time  nearer  being 
lion-meat  than  I  had  before  believed.  The 
blood-hound  stood  proudly  by,  wagging  his  tail 
as  though  waiting  for  the  praise  for  killing  him. 
Poor  fool !  He  was  not  as  much  as  a  gray-back 
in  the  folds  of  the  shirt  of  a  professional  tramp. 
I  felt  very  glad  that  I  did  not  tackle  the  animal 
alone.  We  carefully  examined  every  cartridge 
we  had.  Charles  said  if  I  could  have  caught 
the  tail  I  might  have  gone  to  thunder  and 
fought  my  own  battle,  like  he  did  with  the  buf- 
falo. We  looked  carefully  around  that  day,  ex- 
pecting to  find  the  mate ;  but  we  saw  no  more, 
and  the  next  morning  journeyed  on. 

When  we  were  about  the  center  of  the  terri- 
tory we  struck  south  for  the  Red  Eiver,  which 
bounds  the  territory  on  the  south.  We  struck 
the  Washita  River,  Wild  Horse  Creek,  and 
many  other  small  streams,  finding  many  cattle 
along  every  water,  and  game  in  all  directions. 
Great  herds  of  buffaloes  were  daily  seen  heading 
to  the  north.  There  being  plenty  of  good  water 
all  along  the  route  from  the  Canadian  to  the  Red 
River,  the  journey  was  a  pleasant  one.  The 
country  of  the  Red  River  was  rough  as  the 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  137 

Canadian,  and  was  good  for  naught  but  raising 
stock.  We  left  the  Red  River  and  went  down 
the  Big  Washita  ;  and  then  on  to  the  Brazos, 
and  down  its  head-waters  to  the  Double  Mount- 
ain, Texas,  which  we  had  been  told  was  the 
range  of  the  main  buffalo-herd  of  the  south. 
The  story  was  certainly  correct,  for  they  were 
here  by  the  thousands  ;  and  not  being  nearly  so 
wild  as  where  we  had  hunted,  it  was  no  more  to 
shoot  a  buffalo  here  than  to  kill  a  cow.  The 
country  was  rough,  and  destitute  of  all  but  short 
grass;  and  though  there  were  cattle  here,  they 
were  not  nearly  so  numerous  as  at  other  places 
where  we  had  been.  There  was  a  little  ranch 
now  and  then  stuck  in  among  the  rocks— and  one 
man  stays  in  each  ;  but  they  carry  their  lives  in 
a  holy  pocket  every  day  and  night.  They  have 
become  somewhat  reconciled  to  this  hermit-life, 
and  do  not  give  the  danger  its  full  weight. 
This  is  about  as  wild  a  country  as  lies  within  the 
borders  of  our  Union;  and  if  a  person  had  the 
material,  and  were  prepared,  he  could  make 
crooked  whisky  here  without  molestation  by  the 
authorities. 

We   were  now  prepared    to  cross  the  staked 
plains,    which    had    been   reported  to  us   as   a 


138  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

broad,  dry,  and  barren  country ;  that  it  required 
several  days'  journey  to  cross,  upon  which  many 
persons  had  perished,  and  where,  several  years 
ago,  a  whole  company  of  soldiers  had  been  led 
by  the  Indians  whom  they  were  pursuing,  and 
there  became  bewildered  and  died  in  this  water- 
less region.  We  filled  our  barrel  and  three 
skins  with  water  from  a  cool,  crystal  spring  that 
bubbled  from  beneath  a  rock  and  headed  the 
Colorado  River,  and  steered  due  west  for  the 
Rio  Pecos  in  New  Mexico.  The  first  night  out 
we  camped  upon  a  dry,  barren  plain,  level  as  a 
floor,  and  almost  destitute  of  grass,  all  anima- 
tion having  disappeared.  We  traveled  beneath 
the  burning  sun ;  and  resting  at  night  upon  the 
broad  couch  of  nature,  we  breathed  the  light, 
warm  air.  It  was  all  the  same  in  any  direction, 
with  no  object  to  obstruct  the  vision,  and  not 
one  cloud  to  dim  the  splendor  of  the  setting  sun. 
On  the  eve  of  the  third  day  out  our  attention 
was  attracted  to  some  white  objects  upon  the 
prairie  ahead,  and  which,  upon  coming  up,  we 
found  to  be  the  skeletons  of  four  men  bleaching 
in  the  sun.  The  thirsty  reptile  had  doubtless 
strangled  them ;  and  as  we  stood  gazing  upon 
the  whitened  forms,  we  thought  of  the  agonies 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  ]  391 

of  that  last  hour.  They  must  have  lain  there 
for  some  years,  for  there  was  not  even  a  vestige- 
of  else  but  the  bones.  They  had  undoubtedly 
cast  away  everything  to  hurry  on ;  and  when 
the  weakest  fainted,  the  others  in  their  delirium 
sunk  by  his  side,  all  determined  to  soar  upon  the 
same  wings  to  the  land  beyond,  where  the  crys- 
tal fountains  are  flowing  freely. 

The  weather  being  so  warm  and  the  air  so- 
dry,  our  horses  required  much  water;  and  though 
we  could  somewhat  gauge  ourselves,  we  were- 
compelled  to  give  them  what  they  wanted.  We 
were  just  as  saving,  however,  as  we  dared  be,, 
and  upon  the  morning  of  the  fifth  day  out  we 
tapped  the  last  skin  and  the  last  water.  This 
was  just  like  mother's  bread.  When  the  flour  is 
all  gone  and  the  horses  have  the  epizooty  so- 
that  no  one  can  go  to  the  mill,  and  the  boy's  once 
find  out  the /ads  in  the  case,  the  last  loaf  is  sat- 
urated with  honey,  and  every  one  can  make  a 
meal  upon  bread  and  coffee.  We  stretched  this 
out  until  noon  on  the  sixth  day,  when  there  was 
but  one  gallon  left,  and  that  almost  warm 
enough  to  cook  eggs.  Morning  dawned,  and 
the  sun  rolling  from  the  horizon  in  all  its- 
grandeur  had  to  us  little  attraction.  Things  be- 


140 


gan  to  look  badly.  Six  days  upon  a  plain  level 
as  a  floor  and  dry  as  the  internal  regions,  and 
not  an  object  yet  in  sight,  I  tell  you  is  a  bad  re- 
port. We  had  long  been  out  of  corn;  and  the 
grass  being  so  scarce  our  horses  were  pretty  well 
gaunted,  and  now  no  water.  How  long  would 
they  hold  out  ?  Just  before  we  hooked  up  I 
took  the  field-glass  and  from  the  wagon  survey- 
ed the  surroundings.  Looking  carefully  to  the 
west  I  saw  broken  country.  Oh,  joy!  And  when 
I  spoke  the  boys  shouted  aloud.  We  knew  that 
we  were  now  safe,  and  we  would  sleep  that 
night  by  the  purple  stream.  The  hills  were  a 
great  way  off,  and  if  the  horses  could  have 
known,  as  we  did,  that  just  ahead  gurgled  the 
life-giving  stream,  we  would  liave  spanned  the 
journey  in  half  the  time.  However,  when  with- 
in about  a  mile  of  the  hills  they  appeared  to 
smell  water,  and  pointing  their  ears  they  sped 
hastily  along.  But  in  spite  of  our  eagerness  we 
came  among  the  hills  by  the  moonbeam's  misty 
light.  There  was  the  stream,  rippling  clear  and 
cool;  and  it  is  needless  to  say  that  was  to  us 
a  merry  night.  We  sat  up  all  night  talking 
of  the  dangers  of  the  country,  and  contrasting 
the  might  of  the  roaring  lion  with  the  power  of 
the  quiet  monster,  thirst. 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  141 

In  the  morning  we  took  our  rifles  and  started 
among  the  hills  to  get  some  meat  for  breakfast. 
"We  were  not  out  long  before  Dave's  rifle  rung 
out  sharply  in  the  still  morning  air.  Going 
to  him,  we  found  him  with  a  large  buck  deer ; 
and  we  had  a  splendid  venison  roast  for  break- 
fast. The  country  was  very  rough,  and  hung 
upon  the  edge  of  the  plain  like  a  great  ruffle,  and 
to  the  west  tossing  higher  and  higher.  There 
were  a  few  buffaloes  here  also.  We  stayed  in 
this  camp  several  days,  living  upon  the  best 
of  meat,  and  recruiting  our  horses  upon  the 
rich  grass  of  the  valley.  There  were  also  a 
few  cattle  straggling  along  the  river;  and  they 
were  wilder  than  the  buffaloes.  "We  at  length 
moved  up  the  river  and  came  among  some 
dwarf  timber;  and  to  sit  in  the  shade  of  these 
little  trees  was  more  pleasant  to  us  than  any  other 
period  of  our  lives.  The  wolves  were  very  nu- 
merous here ;  and  we  were  compelled  to  sleep  by 
the  fire  every  night  to  keep  our  clothes  from  be- 
ing torn  by  these  foul-mouthed  creatures,  who 
would  howl  within  the  very  limits  of  our  camp, 
and  terrify  our  horses  so  that  we  had  to  tie  them 
to  trees  with  double  ropes. 

It  is  somewhat  amusing  to  see   them   capture 
their  game — sometimes  taking  down  a  large  buf- 


142  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

falo  bull  or  even  a  wild  horse.  If  the  game  is 
in  a  flock  or  herd,  they  cautiously  surround  it, 
and  gradually  round  them  up  to  close  quarters. 
If  they  are  antelope  or  deer,  as  they  break 
through  the  guard  several  are  usually  captured ; 
but  if  they  are  buffaloes,  they  watch  for  a  calf  to 
come  to  the  outside  of  the  bunch,  and  pop !  they 
have  him.  Sometimes  as  many  as  twenty  wolves 
surround  a  herd  ;  and  to  see  with  what  cuteness 
and  tact  they  execute  their  work  is  interesting 
in  the  extreme.  When  they  are  very  hungry 
they  will  tackle  most  any  animal.  They  sport 
carelessly  around  until  he  is  off  his  guard,  and 
then  dash  upon  him ;  and  while  some  run  at  the 
head,  the  main  aim  is  to  cut  the  ham-string.  I 
have  seen  large  bulls  disabled  in  this  way  and  at 
the  entire  mercy  of  a  pack  of  hungry  wolves, 
who  sometimes  tear  their  satisfaction  from  the 
living  animal  and  leave  him  struggling  in  his 
agonies.  Their  teeth  are  sharp  and  their  jaws 
are  like  vices ;  and  they  sometimes  snap  a  large 
piece  out  of  an  animal,  and  then  let  him  run 
away. 

New  Mexico  is  noted  for  its  poisonous  reptiles 
and  insects,  such  as  rattlesnakes,  scorpions,  centi- 
pedes, tarantulas,  etc.,  and  finding  them  creeping 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  143 

upon  most  every  hill-side,  we  were  compelled  to 
be  very  careful  lest  we  should  tramp,  sit,  or  lie 
upon  some  destructive  stinger. 

We  had  two  beds,  and  John  and  myself  slept 
together.  One  lovely  moonlight  night,  after  we 
had  all  retired,  and  my  mind  was  resting  upon 
the  border  of  slumber,  I  was  startled  by  John 
uttering  a  war-whoop  and  leaving  the  bed  in  a 
single  leap.  Being  about  half  asleep,  and  think- 
ing that  perhaps  the  devil  was  under  the  cover, 
I  did  not  take  time  to  rise,  but  started  to  roll; 
and  being  near  the  bank  of  a  little  stream  that 
emptied  into  the  river,  I  never  stopped  rolling 
until  I  splashed  into  the  water.  I  was  then 
thoroughly  awakened,  arid  felt  as  though  I  was 
not  afraid  of  the  devil  if  he  were  there.  The  rest 
of  the  boys  came  to  the  rescue  with  their  colors 
flying,  and  pulling  off  the  covers  we  found  two 
large  rattlesnakes  on  John's  side  of  the  bed. 
They  were  swelled  with  rage  and  rattled  fu- 
riously. We  had  never  known  them  to  crawl 
into  a  bed.  After  killing  them,  we  moved  the 
bed  and  found  a  hole  in  the  ground  under  it. 
We  then  concluded  that  they  were  out  when  we 
lay  down,  and  in  trying  to  find  the  way  back 
they  got  into  the  bed;  and  John  hearing  the 


144  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

rattle  left  the  bed  just  as  the  reptile  was  ready 
to  strike.  We  were  always  careful  after  that 
never  to  build  upon  another's  homestead. 

The  centipede  is  a  brown-colored  worm  of 
about  the  thickness  of  a  lead-pencil,  and  three 
inches  in  length  when  full  grown.  It  has  a  great 
number  of  legs,  and  at  the  end  of  each  a  little 
black  needle  which  is  worked  in  and  out  at 
pleasure  like  a  cat's  claw.  These  are  the  stings, 
and  whenever  the  worm  is  crossed  it  sinks  them. 
The  venom  from  the  rattlesnake  is  not  to  be 
compared  with  its  effect.  When  they  are  found 
upon  the  body,  the  only  safe  way  is  to  be  perfectly 
motionless,  and  not  disturb  them,  and  they  will 
often  crawl  harmlessly  away;  but  should  the 
person  move  or  excite  them,  they  will  sink  their 
deadly  claws  and  run  across  the  person  rapidly, 
and  beyond  all  remedy  the  flesh  will  rot  to  the 
bone  in  a  short  time.  I  once  saw  the  effect  of  a 
sting.  We  were  one  sunny  day  sitting  with 
some  greasers  upon  the  shady  side  of  an  adobe 
house  near  Santa  Fe,  when  a  large  centipede 
dropped  from  the  roof  of  the  house  down  upon 
the  naked  breast  of  one  of  them.  He  struck  at 
it  and  tried  to  knock  it  off  quickly  as  possible ; 
but  in  spite  of  his  efforts  it  ran  clear  across  his 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  145 

body,  and  in  a  few  hours  he  died  with  his  body 
terribly  swelled.  They  are  regarded  the  most 
deadly  of  all  animals  or  insects  in  the  West;  and 
for  the  benefit  of  my  readers  who  may  sometime 
journey  in  their  land,  I  would  advise  and  pray 
that  should  one  of  these  stingers  get  upon 
your  body,  be  careful  to  not  disturb  it,  for  the 
danger  is  utter  ruin. 

The  tarantula  is  a  very  large  spider,  with 
large,  strong  legs,  and  can  jump  four  or  five  feet. 
It  bites  instead  of  stings;  and  though  its  bite 
is  not  deadly  like  the  centipede's,  it  is  neverthe- 
less very  painful,  and  swells  the  parts  fearfully, 
sometimes  resulting  in  death.  They  are  a  peace- 
ful insect ;  but  when  tormented  they  become  very 
angry,  and  will  jump  at  their  enemy  in  great 
fury.  These  two  insects  are  very  numerous  in 
New  Mexico,  and  it  is  very  dangerous  to  sleep 
on  the  ground;  and  citizens  are  all  the  time 
cautious. 

While  speaking  of  poisonous  animals  and  in- 
sects. I  might  also  mention  that  the  skunk  out 
here  is  also  very  dangerous.  They  will  come  to 
your  bed  at  night  and  bite  you;  and  the  bite 
has  never  been  known  to  fail  to  produce  hydro- 
phobia. It  is  a  question  much  discussed  whether 
10  »• 


146 


it  is  the  effect  of  the  general  skunk-bite,  or 
whether  there  are  just  certain  ones  which  are 
themselves  afflicted  with  hydrophobia.  The  gen- 
eral opinion  is,  however,  that  any  skunk's  bite 
will  produce  the  effect.  The  subject  acts  just 
as  though  bitten  by  a  mad-dog,  and  it  is  said 
that  there  is  no  remedy  when  once  bitten.  I  saw 
a  man  by  the  name  of  Jones,  in  Texas,  die  in 
the  most  horrible  agony  from  a  skunk-bite  he 
had  received  away  up  in  Nebraska  eighteen 
months  before.  These  skunks  are  in  appearance 
like  our  eastern  skunks ;  but  whether  they  are 
equally  poisonous  I  do  not  know.  The  cow-boys 
are  always  on  the  alert  for  skunks. 

We  moved  on  up  the  river;  and  one  evening 
as  I  rode  down  a  deep  ravine  a  half  mile  north 
of  camp  I  discovered  smoke  arising  out  of 
a  deep  gulch  just  below.  I  recognized  it  as 
an  Indian  fire.  I  tied  my  pony  to  a  bush  in  a 
deep  hollow  and  cautiously  crawled  down  upon 
the  camp.  I  got  within  about  three  hundred 
yards  of  them,  and  peeping  out  from  behind  a 
bluff  I  saw  four  Indians,  who,  from  their  dress, 
I  recognized  to  be  Kiawas,  from  the  pan-handle 
country.  Two  were  smoking  their  pipes,  and 
the  other  two  were  broiling  meat  upon  a  stick 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  147 

before  a  little  fire ;  and  just  below  them  were 
twelve  good  ponies  grazing  in  the  ravine. 
Knowing  the  Kiawas  to  be  horse-thieves,  and 
finding  them  here  under  such  suspicious  circum- 
stances, I  concluded  that  they  had  been  out  steal- 
ing and  were  just  returning  with  their  booty. 
Creeping  cautiously  away,  I  got  my  pony  and 
rode  off  to  camp;  and  after  informing  the  boys 
of  what  I  had  seen,  we  concluded  to  rescue  the 
ponies  from  their  red  captors.  So,  just  after 
twilight  we  moved  quietly  upon  the  camp — John 
and  myself  upon  ponies,  and  Dave  and  Charles 
on  foot.  When  we  were  within  a  hundred 
yards  of  the  camp  and^  unnoticed,  we  halted  and 
took  a  careful  survey  of  the  ground.  A  cool 
wind  had  sprung  up  that  evening,  and  by  a 
bright  little  fire  lay  the  four  bodies  in  blankets, 
while  fifty  yards  below  grazed  the  twelve  hob- 
bled ponies  in  the  bright  moonlight.  Their 
front  feet  were  tied  closely  together  with  ropes, 
and  they  were  compelled  to  step  very  short. 
Our  plans  were  formed  as  follows :  We  would 
open  upon  them  with  four  rifle  shots;  and  while 
the  footmen  kept  up  the  fire,  the  horsemen  were 
to  leave  with  them  their  rifles,  and  with  six- 
shooters  in  hand  dash  between  the  camp  and 


148  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

the  ponies,  and  with  wild  whoops  run  off  the 
horses.  Whang !  went  the  rifles,  and  away  we 
flew  toward  the  camp.  Two  of  the  Indians  did 
not  appear  to  wake  up;  but  the  other  two 
sprung  from  the  fire  like  wild  deer.  We  ran 
upon  the  herd  shouting  and  yelling,  and  the 
boys  keeping  a  brisk  fire  all  the  while.  The 
horses  were  so  frightened  that  they  jumped 
with  both  front  feet  together,  arid  moved  off 
down  the  ravine  pretty  rapidly.  After  running 
them  about  a  half  mile  we  ceased  our  noise,  and 
the  ponies  slackened.  Then  wTe  rode  among  them 
and  dismounted  to  cut  the  hobbles,  knowing  the 
necessity  of  taking  all  or  run  the  risk  of  being 
overtaken.  It  was  to  be  quick  work,  for  the 
two  Indians  who  woke  up  were  sure  to  come  for 
the  horses  as  quickly  as  possible.  We  had  cut 
the  hobbles  of  eleven,  and  had  them  roped  to- 
gether; but  one  pretty  dark  horse  had  run  off 
down  a  gulch.  John  held  the  captives  and  I 
ran  oft'  to  get  the  other.  He  was  pretty  wild, 
and  I  followed  him  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
before  I  could  get  to  him.  At  length  he  became 
quiet,  and  going  up  to  him  I  cut  the  hobbles,  and 
had  just  fastened  it  on  his  head  when  an  Indian 
rushed  from  behind  the  bluff  at  my  very  side. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  149 

Seeing  me  alone,  I  suppose  he  took  me  to  be  his 
comrade;  and  running  up  muttering  something 
in  the  Kiawa  tongue,  he  sprung  upon  the  pony's 
back.  This  was  my  opportunity,  and  seizing 
my  six-shooter  I  struck  him  a  furious  blow  in 
the  face ;  and  as  he  fell  to  the  ground  I  mounted 
and  rode  off  for  John.  I  do  not  suppose  the 
horse  was  ever  backed  before;  and  instead  of  go- 
ing toward  John,  he  went  in  the  other  direction 
full  bent.  I  had  a  rope  through  his  mouth  ;  but 
finding  him  unmanageable,  and  not  having  time 
to  break  colts,  I  succeeded  in  checking  him;  and 
springing  to  the  ground  I  shot  him  through  the 
body  and  cut  off  his  artery,  and  ran  off  on  foot. 
As  I  went  up  the  ravine  I  saw  a  person  coming 
down,  and  springing  to  one  side  I  crouched  be- 
hind a  rock.  As  he  went  by  I  saw  it  was  the 
Indian  with  his  rifle  in  his  hand.  He  passed 
within  six  feet  of  me;  but  I  only  wanted  the 
ponies,  and  did  not  want  to  kill  an  Indian  unless 
it  was  absolutely  necessary  for  my  own  safety. 
After  he  had  passed  I  ran  on.  I  soon  met  Dave 
and  Charles,  who  having  heard  the  shot,  sup- 
posed that  I  was  in  trouble  and  were  coming  to 
my  assistance.  We  all  went  back  to  where  I 
left  John,  but  he  was  gone;  and  going  on,  we 


150  KOMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

found  him  in  camp,  with  the  horses.  We  then 
moved  out,  and  never  halted  until  the  sun  was 
darting  his  bright  rays  upon  us.  We  had  been 
moving  as  rapidly  and  quietly  as  possible;  but 
knowing  that  we  would  be  trailed,  we  kept  a 
mounted  guard  among  the  hills  upon  either  side 
of  the  wagon,  to  keep  from  being  surprised  by 
the  enemy,  who  might  head  us  off. 

The  next  evening  we  came  to  a  trading-post 
called  Alamo,  on  the  Pecos  bank ;  and  about 
eight  o'clock,  as  we  were  seated  upon  a  bench 
in  the  post,  four  cow-boys  rode  up,  and  dis- 
mounting, walked  in  to  the  bar,  with  the  bells 
jingling  upon  their  spurs  and  their  six-shooters 
dangling  at  their  sides.  They  set  their  broad 
hats  back  upon  their  heads,  and  one  big  fellow, 
with  his  shirt  open  and  his  breast  naked,  called 
us  all  up  and  we  drank  together.  They  were 
not  satisfied  until  we  had  taken  several  rounds ; 
and  though  the  drinks  were  two  bits  apiece,  they 
were  as  free  as  though  they  were  but  three  cents. 
Knowing  that  it  would  not  do  to  refuse  to  drink 
with  cow-boys,  when  they  ask,  we  drank  with 
them,  but  touched  it  lightly.  We  talked  and 
laughed  together  as  though  we  were  old  friends ; 
and  at  length  they  said  they  were  out  on  a  horse- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  151 

hunt.  They  said  that  a  few  days  before,  as  they 
were  camped  upon  Salt  Lake,  fifty  miles  to  the 
west,  some  Kiawa  Indians  had  dashed  into  their 
camp,  and,  killing  the  cook,  ran  off  twelve  good 
ponies.  They  described  them  and  told  the  brand, 
and  we  were  sure  that  we  had  the  horses.  We 
told  them  of  our  capture,  and  they  recognized 
the  ponies  at  sight.  We  told  them  that  we  had 
left  two  thieves  sleeping  by  a  little  fire  in  a  ra- 
vine fifty  miles  below,  and  had  killed  one  stub- 
born pony.  They  said  what  we  had  done  was 
well  done ;  but  it  must  be  finished.  They  said 
they  had  been  bothered  a  great  deal  with  these 
Kiawa  and  Comanche  devils,  who  constantly 
hung  upon  their  range,  shooting  down  every 
lone  cow-boy  and  running  off  every  horse  they 
could  get,  and  they  had  made  up  their  minds  to 
give  them  some  of  their  own  medicine.  The 
next  morning  they  rode  off,  bright  and  early, 
swearing  that  if  they  could  be  found  the  other 
two  would  be  sleeping  by  the  fire  that  night. 
They  insisted  upon  our  going  along;  but  it  was 
not  our  mission  to  kill  Indians,  and  we  refused. 
We  were  satisfied  that  if  the  story  had  been 
rightly  told,  our  work  had  been  rightly  done ; 
and  we  moved  on  up  the  river. 


152  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

The  country  was  very  rough ;  but  we  kept 
along  the  river,  and  in  a  few  days  were  in  Santa 
Fe,  the  capital  of  New  Mexico,  and  the  terminus 
of  the  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  Railroad. 
The  town  is  located  among  the  hills,  and  stage- 
roads  are  worn  deep  in  several  directions.  The 
old,  abandoned  Santa  Fe  trail,  which  we  had 
crossed  so  many  times  in  our  hunts,  wound  like 
a  serpent  down  the  hill-side  into  the,  town.  It 
had  been  some  time  since  we  had  seen  frame 
houses,  and  they  appeared  to  us  as  grand  as 
Roman  cathedrals ;  and  for  several  days  we  en- 
joyed the  novelty  of  civilization  very  much. 
There  were  large  stock-yards  here,  and  many 
thousand  head  are  annually  shipped  from  this 
place.  Stock-raising  and  mining  are  all  that 
can  be  done  among  these  hills  and  bluffs. 

We  now  steered  due  north  and  came  into  the 
valley  of  the  Rio  Grande  del  Norte.  We  found 
great  herds  of  cattle  here,  feeding  over  this 
pretty,  rich  range ;  and  there  were  many  little 
ranches  upon  the  banks  of  the  river. 

We  then  struck  north-east,  passing  by  the 
Fishery  Peak  and  going  up  the  Purgatory  River 
to  the  Arkansas.  We  felt  as  though  we  were  at 
home  when  we  stood  upon  the  green  bank  of 


THROUGH  THE    WEST.  153 

this  river;  and  the  settlers — especially  the  girls 
— with  whom  we  had  become  acquainted  prior 
to  our  going  south,  were  apparently  glad  to  see 
us  back,  and  welcomed  us  to  their  little  adobe 
homes  and  rustic  hospitalities. 

It  was  now  late  in  the  month  of  September, 
and  we  concluded  to  go  into  some  kind  of  busi- 
ness and  stay  in  the  valley  that  winter.  We 
had  now  gone  over  a  great  territory  of  prairie; 
and  the  brief  history  of  our  travels  has  perhaps 
given  the  reader  a  faint  idea  of  the  nature  of  the 
country  and  the  occupations  of  the  people.  But 
the  whole  country, — the  climate,  the  inhabitants, 
and  their  occupations, — is  so  different  from  the 
states — as  called  by  western  men- — that  it  is  diffi- 
cult, even  with  the  most  minute  description,  to 
conceive  of  the  great  country  of  the  plains  as  it 
really  is  without  visiting  this  curious  land. 

We  have  stated  that  we  left  the  agricultural 
land  in  east  Nebraska  and  Kansas,  and  that  then 
before  us  stretched  the  historical  plains — the 
fountain  of  mysteries  and  the  land  of  secrets. 
Imagine  a  great  country,  consisting  of  many 
states  and  territories,  and  containing  millions  of 
acres,  with  not  even  the  smallest  tree  or  bush, 
but  covered  with  buffalo-grass,  which  grows 


154  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

about  six  inches  high  and  then  curls  up? 
forming  a  mattress  about  three  inches  thick. 
Through  this  mighty  dry  domain  course  the 
rivers  as  marked  upon  the  map.  The  banks  are 
usually  —  though  not  always  —  skirted  with  a 
light  growth  of  cotton-wood  trees ;  and  the  val- 
leys are  narrow,  and  fringed  upon  either  side  by 
great  bluffs  whose  foot-hills  usually  roll  some 
distance  into  the  plain.  Now,  between  these 
rivers  there  is  very  often  a  stretch  ot  several 
hundred  miles,  and  sometimes  not  a  drop  of 
water ;  but  usually  there  is  water  to  be  found  in 
drives  of  fifty  and  one  hundred  miles — some- 
times closer  and  sometimes  much  farther.  These 
little  waters  are  very  seldom  running  streams, 
but  are  small  pools  standing  in  deep  gulches,, 
and  sometimes  a  little  lake  resting  in  a  small 
bowl  at  the  foot  of  a  bluff.  The  country  is  al- 
ways rough  where  there  is  water ;  and  old  plain- 
ers  can  always  tell  when  they  are  near  it.  The 
gulches  that  have  water  standing  in  them,  like 
the  rivers,  usually  have  small  trees  also.  ISTow^ 
between  these  waters -the  plain  is  generally  almost 
as  level  as  a  floor;  and  standing  there,  the  hori- 
zon looks  perfectly  round.  Along  the  waters  the 
grass  is  thick  and  luxuriant,  but  gradually  grows 


THROUGH  THE   WEST.  155 

shorter  as  you  leave ;  and  the  long,  dry  stretches 
are  often  very  lightly  covered.  As  you  travel 
along  over  the  level  plains  it  appears  as  though 
there  is  a  raise  just  ahead  all  the  time;  and 
where  it  looks  level  as  a  floor  there  are  often 
great  gulches  which  can  not  be  seen  until  com- 
ing almost  upon  their  very  banks.  Sometimes 
you  will  come  into  several  miles  of  very  soft 
sand,  with  hardly  a  spire  of  grass  upon  it* 
Now,  persons  who  understand  this  country  know 
just  where  the  waters  lie,  and  prepare  for  the 
trip;  and  very  often  where  another  person 
would  perish  they  could  find  water  in  a  few  hun- 
dred yards  under  a  rock  at  the  foot  of  a  hill. 

There  is  much  mirage  upon  the  plains,  and  it 
is  much  worse  some  days  than  others.  It  looks 
as  though  there  were  a  pretty,  rolling  river,  or 
sometimes  a  large  lake,  but  a  mile  or  so  off. 
Nothing  is  plainer;  and  the  imitation  is  so  com- 
plete that  old  plainers  are  sometimes  deceived  in 
a  country  they  do  not  know.  It  is  caused  from 
an  unequal  refraction  of  the  lower  stratums  of 
the  atmosphere ;  and  when  animals  are  in  it 
they  are  loomed  up  to  twice  their  natural  height. 
An  antelope  is  often  taken  for  a  buffalo,  and 
sometimes  a  bone  or  a  buffalo-chip  looks  like  an 


156 


animal.  Objects  often  appear  inverted.  To  a 
tender-foot  the  deception  is  often  so  complete 
that  many  a  poor,  perishing  person,  in  whose 
eyes  were  fast  gathering  the  shades  of  death, 
exhausted  his  last  efforts  in  trying  to  reach  the 
imaginary  river,  and  his  last  breaths  were  drawn 
in  the  belief  that  he  was  dying  within  sight  of 
the  cool,  flowing  waters.  I  had  read  many  stir- 
ring stories  of  this  country,  and  had  often  heard 
of  the  strange  peculiarities  to  be  witnessed  and 
experienced  here;  but,  though  my  imaginings 
were  extensive,  I  had  never  indulged  in  delusion 
sufficient  to  think  of  the  country  in  anything 
near  its  reality.  Ah !  many  a  skeleton  lies 
bleaching  upon  the  hill-side,  with  no  tomb-stone 
to  tell  its  name  or  age  nor  any  one  to  tell  the 
secret  of  his  death.  I  have  often  thought  that 
if  the  Angel  of  Death  would  read  to  the  world 
his  prairie  record  some  of  the  accounts  would 
swell  the  heart  of  the  most  calloused  desperado 
and  wring  a  tear  from  the  wickedest  eye. 

The  legends  of  the  plains  are  numerous,  and 
persons  who  have  never  been  here  would  natu- 
rally consider  them  fabulous,  and  the  most  gross 
exaggerations ;  but  I  know  now,  from  experience, 
that  the  worst  is  reasonable.  From  the  country 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  157 

being  all  alike,  and  no  objects  to  guide  the  way, 
— no,  not  even  a  weed,  or  the  smallest  bush,  or 
distinguishable  hill  or  valley, — when  persons 
once  lose  their  way  they  are  as  completely  lost 
as  though  they  were  as  blind  as  a  granite  monu- 
ment fifty  miles  from  living  man.  It  is  some- 
what singular,  but  it  is  a  fact  many  times  verified,, 
that  usually  when  persons  lose  their  way  in  this 
country  their  minds  wander,  and  they  do  not 
even  recognize  their  own  camps  when  they  come 
in  sight  of  them.  It  appears  that  the  average 
person  is  so  horrified  at  the  thought  of  being  lost 
and  alone  in  a  broad  wild  country,  where  the 
wild  beast  growls  among  the  hills,  and  where 
the  dry  sands  reflect  perishment  into  their  very 
eyes,  and  no  one  to  direct  their  course,  that  the 
effect  is  natural. 

A  story  is  told  of  an  outfit  crossing  over  a  dry 
prairie  in  the  pan-handle  country.  The  first 
night  out  from  water  a  young  man  who  had 
lately  come  from  the  states  went  out  among  the 
hills  with  his  rifle  to  look  for  deer.  He  did  not 
know  the  danger,  and  unconsciously  wandered  a 
mile  away.  When  the  sun  was  getting  low  he 
turned  for  camp.  It  appeared  to  him  as  plainly 
as  the  hills  before  him,  that  to  turn  back  was  to 


158  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

go  toward  camp.  So,  turning  to  his  left,  he  took 
down  a  ravine,  still  looking  for  game,  and  sure 
that  he  was  near  camp.  On  he  went,  and  the 
sun  sunk  low  in  the  horizon.  Soon  darkness 
veiled  the  day,  and  he  was  still  out,  and  had 
walked  many  miles.  He  drew  out  his  compass; 
but  he  did  not  know  whether  he  was  north, 
south,  east,  or  west  from  carnp,  and  thrilled  with 
the  thought  of  his  probable  condition,  he  became 
completely  bewildered  and  walked  rapidly  all 
night.  The  camp  was  in  a  deep  ravine,  and  the 
boys  supposing  their  tender-foot  companion  to 
be  lost,  went  to  the  top  of  a  hill  and  built  a 
large  fire  with  buffalo-chips,  and  fired  their  guns 
and  loudly  hallooed;  but  all  to  no  purpose.  In 
the  morning  search  was  made.  The  country  was 
sandy  and  lightly  covered  with  grass,  and  he 
could  be  trailed.  Two  of  the  boys,  well  mounted, 
started  in  pursuit.  They  followed  to  the  east 
about  a  mile,  and  then  winding  to  the  south 
about  a  mile  and  a  half  he  made  a  complete  cir- 
cle of  about  two  miles,  and  went  around  three 
times  almost  in  the  same  tracks,  and  then 
started  off  zigzag  to  the  west.  About  noon  an 
object  was  seen  seated  upon  the  side  of  a  hill  in 
the  distance,  and  hurrying  up  the  lost  John  was 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  159 

found.  He  had  become  completely  deranged, 
and  had  torn  every  vestige  of  clothing  from  his 
body,  and  was  holding  the  compass  in  his  hand. 
He  was  so  completely  bewildered  that  he  did  not 
even  recognize  his  own  comrades,  and  it  was  sev- 
eral hours  before  his  mind  regained  its  equilib- 
rium and  he  fully  comprehended  his  position. 
He  then  said  that  it  seemed  as  though  camp 
must  be  near  and  could  be  readily  found ;  but 
when  he  once  became  convinced  that  he  was 
lost,  he  became  so  completely  bewildered  that 
the  compass  was  no  more  use  to  him  than  a  box 
without  a  needle.  He  said  the  hills  and  valleys 
all  looked  alike,  and  there  was  not  a  bush,  or 
weed,  or  anything  whatever  to  mark  his  course, 
much  less  a  neighbor  to  direct  the  way. 

This  is  only  one  of  hundreds  of  cases ;  and  I 
have  heard  of  persons  horribly  mutilating  them- 
selves in  their  mad  agonies.  The  facts  given  are 
perfectly  credible,  for  I  have  felt  their  force  by 
experience.  I  recollect  that  one  warm  spring 
morning  in  south  Colorado,  the  fog  hung  over 
the  prairie  like  the  mist  upon  the  ocean,  and  a 
horse  could  be  distinguished  but  a  few  hundred 
yards.  I  had  stayed  all  night  with  some  cow- 
boys on  Bear  Creek,  and  saddling  my  pony  I 


160  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

started  out  among  the  bluffs  to  steer  my  way  over 
the  plain  to  our  camp  upon  the  Cimaron,  thirty 
miles  below.  I  had  no  compass  with  me,  but  I 
had  crossed  the  country  so  often  that  I  thought 
it  would  be  no  trouble,  even  in  the  midst  of  the 
mighty  fog,  to  grope  my  way.  I  had  scarcely 
left  the  cotton-wood  tops  in  the  mist  when  I 
came  to  another  creek.  This  seemed  very 
strange,  for  I  only  knew  of  one  creek  in  the 
country ;  but  not  willing  to  believe  that  I  was 
again  crossing  Sear  Creek,  I  kept  pushing  on. 
I  saw  some  men  camped  in  a  ravine  just  below, 
and  saw  their  horses  grazing  among  the  hills ; 
but  I  thought  they  must  be  hunters,  and  the 
creek  must  be  one  that  I  had  not  seen.  I  went 
on  until  I  had  crossed  six  creeks ;  and  I  made  up 
my  mind  that  there  was  something  wrong,  and 
that  I  must  be  circling  my  own  camp  on  Bear 
Creek.  I  had  lost  the  location  of  the  boys  I  saw 
awhile  ago,  and  I  rode  down  to  the  stream,  and 
to  save  my  life  I  could  not  tell  which  way  the 
water  ran.  I  dismounted  and  set  my  rifle  on  the 
ground,  and  before  my  left  foot  was  removed 
from  the  stirrup  the  pony  became  frightened  and 
dashed  away.  Losing  my  grip  upon  the  horn 
I  was  jerked  down,  and  the  horse  started  off 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  161 

kicking  down  the  creek.  He  dragged  me  about 
fifty  yards,  and  I  began  to  think  it  did  not  make 
much  difference  which  way  the  water  ran,  when 
I  succeeded  in  getting  a  square  kick  at  the  stir- 
rup with  my  right  foot,  and  luckily  out  it  came. 
The  pony,  now  free,  ran  off  down  the  creek. 
After  following  him  about  three  miles,  I  came 
into  the  camp  of  an  old  hunter  (Barney  Gowe), 
whom  I  had  not  met  for  some  months.  My  pony 
stopped  with  his  horses  and  was  easily  captured. 
I  then  asked  Barney  where  I  was,  and  he 
thought  I  was  codding  him;  but  becoming  con- 
vinced of  my  situation  he  laughed  heartily  and 
told  me  to  stay  for  dinner  and  the  world  would 
turn  right  side  up  again  after  awhile.  It  was 
full  two  hours  before  all  was  right,  and  all  at 
once  the  whole  valley  appeared  natural.  There 
were  the  little  stone  monuments  upon  the  bluffs 
above  to  guide  the  hunter  and  cow-men,  and 
which  had  directed  me  many  a  time.  The  little 
trees,  whose  very  limbs  I  now  recognized,  looked 
as  of  old,  and  the  little  stream,  as  it  rippled 
along,  seemed  to  laugh  at  the  strange  conduct  of 
its  old  friend.  I  was  three  miles  below  where  I 
stayed  all  night;  and  I  had  been  rounding  my 
own  camp  four  or  five  times,  and  did  not  recog- 
n 


162  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

nize  it  nor  the  boys.  They  said  they  saw  me  going 
around  and  did  not  know  what  I  meant.  The 
next  morning  the  fog  had  cleared  away  and  the 
trip  was  made  without  difficulty.  I  only  men- 
tion these  facts  to  more  fully  picture  in  the  im- 
agination of  the  reader  the  country  with  its  at- 
tending circumstances  and  peculiarities  as  it 
really  is,  and  to  warn  those  who  read  these  lines 
that  should  they  ever  become  bewildered  and 
lost  in  this  desert  land  to  be  calm,  keep  possession 
of  their  mind,  and  sit  down  until  the  country 
turns  around  again. 

After  explaining  the  nature  of  the  country, 
the  reader  can  now  perhaps  better  understand 
the  sports  and  occupations  as  they  are  hereinafter 
explained.  There  are  often  car-loads  of  mustang 
ponies  shipped  to  the  states ;  and  people  wonder 
how  they  are  captured — some  supposing  that 
they  are  caught  with  the  lasso.  I  can  say  that 
there  are/ew;  wild  horses  caught  with  the  lariat, 
and  they  are  only  captured  by  the  hunter  hiding 
himself  at  the  water  and  catching  them  as  they 
come  down  to  drink,  or  by  taking  advantage  of 
the  ground  and  making  an  angling  run  upon  the 
herd  and  cutting  them  off.  Blooded  horses  have 
been  brought  to  this  country  for  this  sport,  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  163 

it  has  been  found  that  the  fleetest  horse  can  sel- 
dom succeed  in  bringing  his  rider  to  the  side  of  a 
fully  grown  mustang.  These  animals  are  found 
in  several  of  the  western  states  and  territories, 
along  the  waters  of  the  wild  lands.  There  are 
usually  between  twenty  and  fifty  in  a  herd,  but  I 
have  known  one  hundred  to  be  in  a  single  herd. 
Each  herd  has  a  distinct  range,  usually  about 
ten  miles  across,  and  which  they  can  seldom  be 
forced  to  leave.  There  are  some  very  fine-look- 
ing animals  in  these  wild  gangs,  and  as  they 
dash  over  the  range  their  manes  waive  back 
over  their  rumps,  and  their  tails  spread  grace- 
fully after  them.  I  saw  a  Mexican  capture  a 
fine  iron-gray  stallion  that  (perhaps  in  scratch- 
ing his  head)  had  caught  his  hind  foot  in  his 
long  entangled  mane. 

Now  they  are  captured  as  follows :  Of  course, 
in  each  range  there  is  water,  and  usually— as  I 
have  already  said — where  there  is  water  there  is 
some  small  timber;  but  should  there  be  none 
upon  the  range  of  the  herd  you  wish  to  capture, 
go  some  place  else  and  get  it,  and  after  picking 
out  a  good  location  somewhere  upon  the  range, 
build  up  a  high,  strong  corral  large  enough  to 
hold  the  herd  you  wish  to  capture.  Leave  an 


164  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

entrance  at  one  side,  and  run  a  lane  from  the 
entrance  divergingly  into  the  prairie,  until  the 
lane  is  ahout  one  hundred  yards  wide  at  the 
mouth.  Now  for  the  chase.  Get  four  horses, 
well  shod,  and  put  two  to  a  light  wagon,  and 
put  in  feed  and  provisions  for  several  days  :  and 
get  a  man  to  drive.  Have  two  good  riding- 
ponies,  and  tie  one  behind  the  wagon  and  mount 
the  other.  Now  start  after  the  herd  in  a  walk, 
and  let  the  wagon  follow  just  in  sight  of  you. 
Of  course,  the  first  day  the  mustangs  will  burn 
the  prairie,  and  you  will  not  be  in  sight  of  them 
half  the  time;  but  just  keep  on,  and  never  break 
the  walk.  The  wagon,  of  course,  will  not  travel 
nearly  as  far  as  you  do,  for,  as  the  herd  circles, 
the  driver  can  cut  across.  Choose  a  moonlight 
season,  and  at  first  go  all  night,  keeping  them 
excited  so  that  they  neither -eat  nor  drink.  The 
second  day  you  can  keep  in  sight  all  day;  but 
they  become  very  much  excited  at  seeing  them- 
selves pursued,  and  will  run  frantic  here  and 
there,  and  by  cutting  across  you  need  not  go  half 
their  distance.  You  can  get  to  the  wagon  to 
change  ponies  and  get  a  bite  when  you  wish.  Go 
this  way,  night  and  day,  for  about  three  days, 
when  they  will  become  hungry  and  weak,  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  165 

you  can  get  close.  You  can  now  sleep  at  night 
and  chase  during  the  day.  If  any  of  the  range 
has  been  burned  over,  or  the  ground  is  other- 
wise rough,  their  feet  become  sore  and  they  can 
be  captured  sooner ;  but  usually  about  the  tenth 
day  you  can  ride  up  to  the  herd  and  drive  them 
along.  When  this  is  the  case,  take  a  whip  and 
force  them  along  until  they  are  so  worried  that 
you  can  ride  among  them  and  handle  them  any 
way.  Now  drive  them  to  the  corral  and  fasten 
them  in.  Now  rope  them  together  closely  with 
strong  ropes,  and  drive  them  to  the  railroad  for 
shipment  or  to  the  ranch  to  break  for  use.  While 
they  are  weak  they  are  easily  broken.  Large 
herds  are  often  captured  in  this  way ;  and  there 
are  men  who,  every  spring  when  the  grass  is 
short  and  the  ponies  are  poor,  make  this  a  busi- 
ness, and  from  it  realize  large  profits. 

There  are  many  fine,  large,  branded  horses, 
which  have  escaped  from  the  hunters,  cow-men, 
emigrants,  and  the  Government,  now  running 
with  the  wild  herds,  and,  of  course,  belong  to 
whoever  captures  them.  When  there  are  several 
large  mules  or  fine  horses  in  a  bunch,  it  tickles  the 
hunter  mightily;  and  not  having  forgotten  their 
former  lives,  they  render  the  herd  easier  to  be 
caught,  and  are  not  much  trouble  to  re- break. 


166 


Now  this  is  the  way  the  herds  are  captured ; 
but  of  course  there  are  captures  made  now  and 
then  in  different  ways.  The  hunter  sometimes 
conceals  himself  near  the  water  where  the  herd 
comes  down  to  drink,  and,  watching  his  oppor- 
tunity, creases  his  animal ;  that  is,  he  shoots  him 
through  the  neck  about  an  inch  from  the  top 
and  just  in  front  of  the  shoulders.  This  will 
stun  the  animal  so  that  he  will  fall  and  not  re- 
cover for  some  minutes,  in  which  time  you  can 
bind  him  fast.  This  is,  though,  scientific  work, 
and  none  but  a  fine  shot  need  undertake  it;  for  a 
little  too  high  does  no  good,  and  the  least  too  low 
does  too  much  good  entirely. 

!N"ow,  there  yet  remains  to  be  explained  the 
stock  business,  which  is  so  extensively  carried  on 
in  this  country,  and  to  which  nearly  the  whole 
prairie  country  is  so  peculiarly  adapted.  Were 
I  to  tell  to  persons  who  had  never  been  here  of 
the  millions  of  cattle  and  sheep  that  are  past- 
ured here,  and  of  the  thousands  that  are  annu- 
ally shipped  to  the  states,  it  would  be  incredibly 
received.  As  before  said,  the  prairie  is  covered 
with  buffalo-grass,  which  is  next  to  mountain 
bunch-grass,  which  is  said  to  be  the  strongest 
grass  in  the  world.  It  usually  grows  thickly  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  167 

about  six  inches  long,  and  curls  up — though  of 
course  this  depends  upon  the  range.  It  usually 
rains  and  snows  some  in  the  winter  and  spring 
seasons,  but  during  the  summer  season  it  never 
sprinkles;  and  you  can  be  just  as  sure  of  it  as 
of  the  wrath  to  come.  I  have  often  thought 
that  this  would  be  a  fine  place  to  make  hay. 
The  snows  and  rains  dampen  the  earth,  and  in 
the  spring,  when  the  grass  springs  forth  and  the 
prairie  world  is  wrapped  in  its  green  mantle, 
there  is  no  part  of  the  earth  more  beautiful. 
About  the  first  of  May  the  grass  is  usually 
grown  up,  and  it  stays  green  until  about  August, 
when — except  in  the  valleys — it  all  dries  up  in 
the  hot  sun  and  dry  air,  and  cattle  eat  it  like 
hay.  It  is  then  the  strongest.  And  stock-men 
hate  to  see  the  fall  rains  come ;  for  they  say  it 
takes  the  strength  out  of  the  grass. 


168 


CHAPTER   Y. 

Cattle-Business  Explained  — Branding  Stock— Round-Up— 
Mavorick  —  Beef-  Gathering  —  Stampedes  —  Tender-Feet  — 
Stock-Raising  in  Texas— Cattle-Trail— Buying  Cattle  from 
Trail — How  to  Enter  Stock  Business — Sheep-Raising — 
Greasers — Texas  Cattle-Fever. 

The  country  has  now  perhaps  been  sufficiently 
described;  and  though  I  have  doubtless  been  a 
little  tiresome  in  minutice,  I  hope  at  least  to  have 
succeeded  in  giving  my  readers  a  good  idea  of 
the  great  prairie-land,  and  can  now  perhaps  suc- 
cessfully explain  the  subject  of  stock-raising 
which  is  so  extensively  carried  on  there,  and  a 
business  that  leads  in  occidental  occupations. 
It  has  already  been  said  that  the  rivers  and 
streams  and  little  lakes  that  dampen  the  sands 
of  this  great  wilderness  are  nearly  all  watering- 
places  for  the  herds  that  range  along  their  banks. 
It  now  yet  remains  to  explain  how  the  business 
is  conducted,  as  any  person  can  see  the  positive 
necessity  of  some  system  where  the  country  is  so 
large  and  unfenced,  and  where  there  are  so  many 
owners  and  such  great  herds.  Sometimes  a  herd 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  169 

is  owned  by  one  individual,  but  usually  there  are 
companies;  and  often  one  firm  owns  forty  and 
fifty  thousand  cattle.  It  would  of  course  be  im- 
possible to  stable  or  feed  these  vast  numbers,  and 
they  are  left  upon  the  prairie  the  year  round, 
and  never  even  get  salt.  They  usually  keep  in 
pretty  good  order  during  the  winter;  but  when 
much  snow  falls  and  the  grass  is  covered  for 
some  time,  and  the  weather  is  very  cold,  thou- 
sands of  them  die.  Poor  and  weak,  they  stand 
upon  the  railroad-track  and  are  knocked  off'  in 
great  numbers.  Of  course  these  winters  are  un- 
usual; and  the  profits  are  so  large  that  a  few 
cattle  dying  now  and  then  is  but  a  momentary 
break  in  the  financial  stream. 

Now,  each  firm  has  a  home  ranch,  and  this  is 
built  by  some  pure,  cool  water,  and  nearly  as 
practicable  to  a  railroad  or  good  trail.  This  con- 
sists of  a  substantial  and  commodious  ranch, — 
usually  built  of  stone  or  adobe, — also  a  good  store- 
house in  which  to  store  feed  and  provisions, — 
which  are  bought  at  wholesale  and  then  given 
out  to  the  men  as  needed,  a  good  stable, — and  a 
large,  strong  corral.  Hay  is  then  cut  from  the 
sloughs,  and  quantities  of  it  stacked  in  the 
corral  for  the  stock  that  is  kept  stabled.  Though 


170  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

often  in  wild  places,  these  home  ranches  are 
usually  pretty  places,  and  stock-men  often  have 
their  families  here  with  them.  They  have  good, 
stylish  buggies  and  carriages,  and  riding  and 
driving  horses;  and  every  pleasant  morning  and 
and  evening  the  women  and  children  go  out  to 
ride.  They  have  a  good  track  around  the  ranch 
over  the  level  plain ;  and  while  it  is  altogether 
delightful  to  ride  through  the  pure  air  of  this 
healthy  clime,  the  glitter  of  the  splendid  vehicle 
in  the  morning  sun  attracts  very  little  attention 
from  the  neighbors.  The  girls  can  ride  like  ran- 
gers; and  to  see  them  dashing  over  the  prairie, 
the  pony  fall  into  a  prairie-dog  hole  and  send 
the  fair  one  somersaulting  over  the  head  upon 
the  sand,  is  as  funny  a  sight  as  one  could  wish. 
Each  firm  has  its  own  brand,  and  has  it  recorded 
in  the  county  of  the  home  ranch.  This  brand  is- 
a  piece  of  iron,  wrought  into  the  shape  wished. 
There  is  also  a  peculiar  ear-mark  accompanying 
each  brand.  The  branding-irons  have  long  iron 
handles  with  which  to  use  them.  They  are 
made  red-hot  and  then  held  against  the  animal 
until  burned  sore,  and  often  until  the  hide  is 
burned  through.  Of  course  the  hair  never  grows 
out  here  again,  and  it  is  a  perpetual  mark.  The 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  171 

home  ranch  is  located  upon  some  good,  rich 
pasture-range,  and  by  a  good  water.  Thusr 
many  cattle  can  be  pastured  in  the  vicinity  of  the- 
ranch ;  but  when  the  herd  is  large  it  is  divided 
up  and  driven  to  sometimes  several  other  ranges 
that  are  not  yet  taken  up — each  firm  having 
its  particular  ranges,  which  it  holds  against  all 
others,  except  homesteaders  or  buyers.  Upon 
each  sub-range  there  is  built  one  or  more  little 
picket-ranches,  with  good  corrals  in  which  to- 
brand  cattle.  In  each  of  these  little  houses 
stays  a  cow-boy  to  watch  over  the  cattle  and  see- 
that  they  are  not  killed  or  driven  off  by  Indians, 
Mexicans,  or  hunters.  The  cattle  usually  stay 
upon  the  range  very  well  during  summer ;  but 
when  winter  comes,  and  storms  set  in  they 
are  drifted  many  miles,  and  scattered  over  many 
ranges.  Cattle  drift  from  the  Platte  country,. 
Nebraska,  all  the  way  down  to  the  pan-handle 
country  every  winter.  When  the  winter  winds 
are  severe,  great  numbers  drift  to  ranges  where 
the  country  is  very  broken,  or  where  there  is  tim- 
ber; and  they  often  become  so  thick  that  it  is 
necessary  to  drive  part  of  them  to  other  ranges- 
to  keep  them  from  starving.  This  is  part  of  the- 
cow  boys'  work. 


172 


Every  spring  each  firm  has  about  as  many 
other  brands  upon  its  range  as  of  its  own ;  and 
after  a  long,  stormy  season  one  brand  is  distrib- 
uted along  the  waters  of  several  states  or  territo- 
ries. In  order  that  each  firm  may  know  how  it 
stands,  and  to  brand  the  calves  and  gather  up 
such  as  are  fit  for  market,  each  spring  the  com- 
missioners of  each  county  appoint  a  captain  for 
the  round-up  or  rodere.  The  counties  here  are 
very  large.  There  is  a  place  and  day  set  for  the 
meeting,  and  all  the  cattle-men  of  the  county  are 
informed.  The  time  of  meeting  is  about  the  last 
of  April;  but  the  time  varies  according  to  the 
grass  and  the  strength  of  the  cattle.  Some 
springs  the  grass  comes  on  early,  and  some 
quite  late.  Eacli  firm  sends  men  to  this  round- 
up in  proportion  to  its  herd — usually  four  or  five 
to  each  county  where  it  is  expected  that  there 
are  cattle — sometimes  more,  and  often  but  one. 
Each  boy  has  from  four  to  eight  horses;  and 
when  there  are  two  or  more  from  a  company 
they  have  a  wagon  along.  The  beds,  feed,  pro- 
visions, ropes,  branding-irons,  etc.,  are  hauled 
in  it ;  and  the  driver  of  this  wagon  does  the 
cooking  for  the  boys  of  that  firm.  Where  there 
is  but  one,  he  usually  makes  arrangements  to  go 
with  some  other  firm. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  173 

The  average  cow-boy  saddle  weighs  forty 
pounds,  and  some  weigh  sixty-Jive  pounds.  They 
are  made  with  large,  strong  horns,  and  the  back 
of  the  seat  is  very  high.  The  skirt  is  leather, 
and  comes  back  over  the  pony's  hips.  Upon 
either  side  of  the  saddle  there  is  firmly  fastened 
two  large,  strong  rings,  and  to  each  a  strong 
strap,  two  feet  long,  and  one  inch  and  a  half 
wide.  The  girths  (sinches)  are  about  three 
feet  long,  with  a  strong  ring  in  each  end.  These 
sinches  are  generally  made  of  hair,  twisted 
into  ropes,  and  about  ten  ropes  to  a  sinch,  mak- 
ing it  three  or  four  inches  wide — two  girths  to- 
each  saddle.  The  straps  to  the  rings  upon  the 
right  side  of  the  saddle  are  each  passed  through 
the  rings  at  the  end  of  a  sinch,  and  run  from  one 
ring  to  the  other  and  then  fastened.  Two  good 
blankets  are  then  placed  upon  the  horse,  and  the 
saddle  lifted  to  its  place.  The  front  sinch  is 
then  brought  up  and  the  strap  to  the  front  ring 
is  passed  through  the  ring  of  the  sinch,  and 
from  one  ring  to  the  other  three  or  four  times, 
and  then  drawn  up  tightly  and  fastened  with  a 
ranger's  loop.  The  back  sinch  is  then  brought 
around  behind  the  bulge  of  the  belly  and  fasten- 
ed as  the  other.  By  this  fastening  a  saddle  can  be 


174  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

•drawn  up  very  tightly,  and  fastened  upon   the 
animal  so  firmly  that  the  pony   can   be  jerked 
down    and    pulled    away  by   the    saddle-horn. 
There  is  not  a  buckle  about  the  saddle.     The 
stirrups  are  wooden,  and  are  covered  with  leath- 
ers which  hang  in  two  large  strips  nearly  to  the 
ground.      These    leathers   are   called    tapidares. 
The   bridles   are   strong,   with   raw-hide    reins. 
Each  boy  has  a  half-inch  catch-rope,  about  forty 
feet  long,  and  made  out  of  sea-grass,  leather,  or 
raw-hide.     This  is  made  fast  to  the  saddle-horn 
at  one  end,  and  then  coiled  and  tied  up  to  the 
saddle.     Each  boy  has  also  a  large  pair  of  spurs 
with  rowels  two  inches  long,  and  little  bells  to 
them,  so  that  when  the  boy  walks  the  spurs  roll 
along  upon  the  ground  or  floor,   and   the   little 
bells  make  quite   a   noise.     Now,   with  a  belt 
around  his  waist,  and  two  six-shooters  and  a 
large  knife  upon  it,  he  is  rigged.     The  clothing 
is  made  of  California  duck,  lined  with  blanket, 
the  shirt  a  double-breasted  blue,  and  the  hat  a 
large  white  broad-brim.     In  an  ordinary  stock 
Bounty,  between  two  and  three  hundred   cow- 
boys usually  come  together  for  the  round-up. 
And  you  bet  this  is  a  big  day  for  the  hot  coffee- 
houses of  the  place  of  meeting;    for  the  boys 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  175 

usually  draw  their  wages  for  the  occasion,  and 
usually  succeed  in  getting  things  pretty  well 
warmed  up.  The  bosses  try  to  keep  their  boys 
down;  but  toward  evening,  when  the  boys 
gather  in  from  far  and  near,  there  are  many  so- 
cial glasses  drank.  Often  old  feuds  are  stirred 
up ;  and  wThen  once  a  tight  is  begun  each  boy 
sides  one  way  or  the  other,  and  there  are  seldom 
less  than  four  or  five  killed.  If  a  stranger  comes 
in  and  gives  the  least  occasion,  the  boys  will 
then  have  their  fun.  They  will  make  him  stand 
still  and  hold  out  his  hand,  and  then  try  to  shoot 
between  his  fingers,  or  shoot  a  hole  through  his 
ears,  or  see  how  closely  they  can  shoot  to  the 
top  of  his  head  by  shooting  through  his  hat. 
They  can  do  this  very  well ;  and  there  is  not 
much  danger  until  they  get  pretty  full  and  want 
to  make  too  fine  a  shot,  such  as  shooting  between 
the  flesh  and  skin,  and  then  the  thing  is  too  fine 
to  be  pleasant.  Persons  coming  out  here  to 
learn  this  business  find  it  necessary  to  keep  lip 
and  braggadocio  to  themselves,  or  else  the  initia- 
tion is  pretty  heavy.  The  boys  generally  get 
pretty  well  gathered  in  the  first  day,  and  the 
next  morning  they  pull  out. 

The  captain  commands  the  men  like  an  army 
officer.    The  loose  ponies  are  all  turned  together, 


176 


and  the  herd  often  has  several  hundred  heads. 
The  captain  is  a  man  who  understands  the  coun- 
try and  knows  every  stream  and  pool  in  the- 
range.  He  lays  his  plans  and  arranges  his  route, 
and,  beginning  at  one  side  of  the  county,  he 
takes  a  range;  and  dividing  up  his  men,  he  sends 
them  here  and  there,  up  and  down  the  forks  of 
the  creeks  and  across  to  the  little  lakes  over  the 
range,  and  directs  them  to  bring  in  all  the  cattle 
of  the  range  and  round  them  up  at  a  certain 
place.  In  a  week  or  ten  days  they  generally 
come  in  with  the  cattle;  and  they  often  round 
up  a  mighty  herd.  Each  brand  now  has  one  or 
more  representatives,  and  they  watch  closely 
after  the  interests  of  their  employers.  They 
then  prepare  to  take  out  of  the  round-up  all  the 
brands  that  belong  to  that  particular  range, 
brand  the  calves,  and  let  them  go.  The  herd  is 
surrounded  and  held  by  cow-boys ;  and  fires  are 
built  around,  and  all  the  different  brands  of  that 
range  are  heated  for  action. 

One  man  from  each  firm  that  pastures  upon 
this  range  then  goes  into  the  herd  to  get  the 
calves  that  they  find  following  their  cows. 
When  one  is  found  the  noose  is  thrown,  and 
whether  it  gets  the  calf  round  the  body,  neck, 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  177 

leg,  or  tail  it  is  all  the  same;  the  pony  is  whirled 
and  loped  oft'  to  the  fire,  the  little  fellow  rolling, 
tumbling,  kicking,  and  bawling,  but  all  to  no 
purpose.  He  is  then  held  by  the  boys,  and  the 
red-hot  branding-iron  is  held  against  its  tender 
skin  until  the  hair  is  all  singed  oft'  and  the  hide 
burned  sore.  The  little  fellow  rolls  his  eyes  in 
their  sockets  and  bellows  piteously  as  the  smoke 
curls  upward  from  his  own  body;  but  the  opera- 
tion is  soon  over,  and  he  is  sent  loping  into  the 
free  air  upon  tjhe  range.  When  all  the  calves  are 
out,  the  cows  and  steers  are  then  cut  out  as  fol- 
lows:  Each  firm  has  particular  horses  trained 
for  this  business,  and  they  are  called  "  cutting 
horses."  The  boy  goes  among  the  herd,  and 
when  he  sees  ins  brand  he  needs  follow  it  but  a 
little  way  until  the  pony  knows  what  animal  is 
wanted;  and  all  the  rider  has  then  to  do  is  to 
stay  on.  The  pony  walks  after  the  animal, 
dodging  from  one  side  to  the  other,  and  when  he 
has  him  driven  to  the  edge  he  lunges  upon  the 
cow  with  great  fury.  The  cow,  with  fright, 
leaps  from  the  herd ;  and  in  spite  of  her  efforts 
to  get  back,  that  pony  keeps  her  out.  A  rider 
has  to  be  experienced  before  he  can  stick  a  cutting 
horse;  for  they  sometimes  go  after  a  cow  upon 
12 


178  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

a  dead  run,  and  stop  in  two  jumps,  whirl  upon 
the  hind  feet,  and  go  oft'  the  other  way. 

When  the  cattle  of  this  range  are  all  cut 
out  and  the  calves  branded,  the  rest  of  the  herd 
are  then  driven  to  another  range.  They  are  held 
here  by  some  boys  and  left  graze,  while  the  cap- 
tain divides  up  the  rest  of  his  men  and  sends 
them  out  over  that  range  to  gather  in  all  the 
cattle.  They  are  then  all  rounded  up  together, 
and,  as  before,  the  calves  are  branded,  and  all 
the  stock  belonging  to  the  owners  of  that  range 
is  turned  loose  upon  it.  In  this  way  they  go 
from  range  to  range  until  the  whole  county  is 
gone  over  and  each  firm  has  its  cattle  upon  its 
own  range  or  ranges,  and  the  calves  of  that  year 
are  branded.  It  is  usually  about  three  months 
before  the  boys  all  get  in  from  the  different  coun- 
ties, bringing  the  cattle  upon  their  own  ranges 
and  making  their  reports  to  head-quarters. 

A  strict  account  is  kept,  by  the  boys  of  each 
firm>  of  all  the  cows  and  steers  and  calves  that 
are  gathered  from  each  county ;  and  when  the 
round-up  is  over  each  company  knows  just  how 
it  stands.  Sometimes  the  boys  are  a  little  care- 
less and  do  not  brand  deep  enough,  and  forget 
to  mark  the  ear.  In  a  year  the  brand  becomes 


p 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  179 

so  indistinct  that  many  a  quarrel  has  arisen 
among  the  boys  as  to  their  identity ;  and  I  have 
seen  some  bitter  consequences. 

A  calf  that  is  following  no  cow,  and  is  un- 
branded,  is  called  a  mavorick;  and  though  by 
law  these  now  belong  to  the  state  in  some  places, 
they  used  to  belong  to  the  man  who  first  put  his 
brand  there.  There  are  many  calves  missed 
every  year;  and  before  the  next  round-up  they 
are  weaned,  and  no  one  knows  to  whom  they 
belong.  There  are  men  who  have  made  them- 
selves good  herds  by  gathering  up  mavoricks,  and 
often  stealing  calves  from  the  mother,  putting 
their  brands  upon  them,  and  taking  them  off  to 
another  range.  Sometimes,  however,  the  moth- 
er and  offspring  get  together  again  before  they 
have  entirely  forgotten  their  relations;  an$  then 
a  calf  of  one  brand  is  following  a  cow  of  another. 
This  is  very  undesirable  to  the  calf-brander ;  and 
if  he  can  not  destroy  that  mother's  affection,  or 
in  some  way  arrange  that  mixed-up  family  be- 
fore other  cow-men  get  to  see  it,  from  what  I 
have  seen  I  would  advise  him  to  let  the  darned 
calf  go  to  thunder  and  get  out  of  that  unhealthy 
rairie  atmosphere. 

When  the  round-up  is  all  over  and  the  cattle 
are  fat, — usually  about  the  latter  part  of   the 


180  KOMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

month  of  September, — the  beef  season  begins 
They  then  go  upon  their  respective  ranges, 
round  up  the  cattle,  and  cut  out  such  as  are  n't 
for  beeves.  Four  years  is  the  sale  age;  and  sel- 
dom is  one  sold  under  this.  Each  firm  has  a 
foreman,  who  does  the  picking  of  the  beeves; 
and  he  who  is  able  to  tell  when  a  cow  or  steer  is 
fat  is  considered  a  good  cow-man.  The  beeves 
are  then  driven  to  the  railroad,  where  there  are 
stock-pens ;  and  after  the  cars  are  bedded  with 
about  six  inches  of  sand,  the  cattle  are  loaded 
up,  making  every  other  one  face  one  side  of  the 
car,  and  the  others  the  other  side.  Twenty  is 
the  average  car-load,  though  this  number  varies 
with  the  size  of  the  cattle.  I  have  seen  cars 
crowded  with  sixteen  large  steers,  and  know  of 
one  firm  bringing  in  a  thousand  beeves  at  a  time. 
The  shipping-rates  to  St.  Louis  and  Chicago  are 
usually  twenty  dollars  per  car,  making  one  dol- 
lar per  head.  The  cattle  are  generally  well  fat- 
tened ;  and  though  they  do  not  command  quite 
as  high  prices  as  eastern  grain-fed  stocky  the 
profits  are  nevertheless  very  large.  One  man  is 
allowed  to  each  car  of  stock,  to  keep  them  up 
and  arrange  them  should  they  get  fast  or  become 
mixed  up  in  the  car.  In  this  way,  during  the 


THROUGH  THE   WEST.  181 

shipping  season,  many  persons  are  furnished  free 
transportation  to  the  East. 

Beef-gathering  does  not  generally  end  until 
the  snow  flies  and  the  weather  becomes  severe. 
It  is  then  very  rough  for  the  boys;  for,  good  or 
bad,  they  must  take  it,  with  no  shelter  but  a 
gum-coat,  called  a  slicker.  When  they  have  a 
herd  to  hold  they  have  to  stand  guard  all  night, 
the  same  as  day.  Now,  when  the  clouds  sud- 
denly roll  from  the  horizon  and  dash  their  con- 
tents upon  the  plain,  when  the  thunder  begins 
to  bellow  and  the  lightning  to  dart  its  fiery 
tongues  through  the  air,  then  the  cattle  become 
perfectly  frenzied  and  rush  madly  here  and  there; 
and  then  comes  what  they  call  a  stampede. 
Then  there  is  a  time.  Often  but  five  or  six  boys 
are  holding  a  herd  of  several  hundred  large 
beef-steers  when  the  storm  comes  on,  and  as  they 
rush  madly  to  and  fro  the  boys  dash  their  ponies 
here  and  there  in  front  of  them,  and  usually 
hold  them ;  but  when  the  storm  is  furious  and 
the  cattle  become  frantic  and  rush  in  all  direc- 
tions, they  often  break  the  circle,  and  then  the 
work  begins  for  certain.  The  ponies  understand 
their  business,  and  with  all  power  they  get  to 
the  front ;  and  if  the  herd  is  not  too  badly  scat- 


182  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

tered,  and  (if  it  be  at  night)  if  it  be  not  too 
dark,  the  herd  may  again  be  rallied.  Otherwise, 
they  are  gone,  and  the  prairie  fairly  trembles 
beneath  them  as  they,  bellowing,  rush  over  the 
plain.  When  once  thoroughly  stampeded  they 
usually  run  a  long  way  before  checking,  and  it 
takes  several  days  to  gather  them  in  again ;  and 
if  it  be  a  strange  herd  going  through  the  coun- 
try, the  prospect  is  that  many  will  never  be  re- 
captured. It  is  a  sight  to  see  a  large  herd  of 
big  Texas  steers  in  a  storm,  with  heads  erect, 
racing  here  and  there,  clashing  their  great  horns 
together,  and  loudly  snorting.  There  is  danger, 
also ;  for  when  once  they  are  under  full  head- 
way they  are  as  irresistible  as  the  hurricane,  and 
everything  crumbles  before  them. 

Sometimes  when  the  tired,  relieved  guards 
are  sleeping  with  their  ponies  at  their  sides,  the 
herd  stampedes,  and  before  they  can  get  into  the 
saddle  the  pony  escapes  and  the  cattle  rush 
madly  over  them,  trampling  them  into  the  sand. 
I  recollect  of  camping  close  to  a  large  herd  of 
Texas  steers  one  cold  November  night,  when  the 
rain  fell  fast,  and  the  lightning  played  upon 
the  cattle's  horns  like  morning  sunbeams  upon 
the  mountain-top,  and  lighted  up  the  plain  al- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  183 

most  like  day.  The  boys  held  them  for  some  time ; 
but  at  length  the  ponies  became  worried,  and 
away  went  the  steers,  their  trampling  sounding 
like  distant  thunder.  The  boys  all  rushed  for 
the  front,  and  after  about  a  mile  chase,  in  which 
I  joined,  one  of  the  boys  dashed  in  front  of  the 
herd.  In  the  darkness  of  the  night  and  the  ex- 
citement of  the  occasion  he  had  forgotten  a 
dangerous  slough  that  lay  in  that  direction,  and 
his  excited  pony  sprung  into  the  mire.  Of  course 
the  first  jump  the  horse  eunk  deeply  into  the 
mud  and  could  not  extricate  himself,  nor  could 
the  rider  get  away  before  the  maddened  herd 
plunged  in  upon  him.  The  pony  with  its  rider 
was  crushed  into  the  mud  and  buried  alive  be- 
fore our  eyes,  and  the  cattle  struggling  in  the 
mud  above  them.  The  next  morning  we  took 
ropes  and  pulled  some  of  the  steers  from  the  bog 
with  the  saddle-horn  ;  but  some  were  smothered 
in  the  mire  with  the  good  pony  and  gallant 
rider,  whom  we  left  in  their  novel  graves,  know- 
ing that  they  were  dead  anyhow,  and  thinking 
that  perhaps  their  self-made  tombs  were  as  re- 
spectable as  any  we  could  hew. 

As  was  said  before,  each  firm  sends  a  wagon 
with  each  squad  of  men  that  goes  out  upon  the 


184 


prairie.  The  wagons  all  have  nice  large  cup- 
boards (called  mess-boxes)  fixed  in  the  back  end, 
and  when  going  out  they  take  provisions,  feed, 
clothes,  beds,  ropes,  etc.,  and  a  good  set  of  camp 
implements.  This,  then,  is  what  is  called  a  cow- 
outfit.  The  horses  are  not  fed  any  grain  unless 
worked  hard  and  having  no  time  to  graze.  In 
this  case  it  is  also  necessary  that  they  should  be 
shod.  Each  company  has  on  hand  a  large  num- 
ber of  pressed  shoes  of  all  sizes,  and  before  the 
boys  go  out  they  always  fit  their  ponies  with  a 
couple  pairs  of  shoes  apiece;  and  taking  also 
a  shoeing  outfit,  they  shoe  their  own  ponies. 
"When  the  boys  are  on  a  cow  or  horse  hunt,  they 
tell  the  cook  where  they  will  be  for  the  next 
meal,  and  he  goes  immediately  there  and  has 
grub  prepared  for  them  as  they  come  in.  From 
the  cook  being  alone  so  much  of  the  time,  he  is 
exposed  to  great  dangers ;  and  many  an  outfit 
has  gathered  to  their  wagon  to  find  their  cook 
lying  murdered  by  the  dinner-fire.  It  is  neces- 
sary that  the  cook  should  be  thoroughly  ac- 
quainted with  the  country,  for  he  is  sent  across 
the  prairie  in  every  direction  from  one  range  to 
the  other.  He  is  sometimes  called  upon  to  get 
up  a  meal  for  ten,  fifteen,  or  twenty  men  at  very 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  185 

short  notice — often  in  twenty  or  twenty-five  min- 
utes; and  you  may  imagine  the  skill  that  these 
fellows  have  acquired  when  this  can  be  done, 
especially  when  the  buffalo-chips  are  damp. 
The  boys  will  run  a  dirty  cook  out  of  camp ;  but 
they  think  nothing  of  seeing  the  cook  gather  up 
buffalo-chips  with  his  hands  and  then  make  up 
bread  without  washing.  There  is  a  great  differ- 
ence in.  camp-cooks ;  and  some  make  nice  dough- 
nuts and  puddings  for  the  boys,  while  others  get 
nothing  but  bread  and  meat,  and  sometimes 
beans  and  potatoes.  Imagine  an  eastern  girl 
scolding  the  boys  for  not  procuring  sound,  dry 
hickory  wood,  or  grumbling  because  the  stove  is 
not  a  good  baker,  and  spreading  paper  over  the 
bread,  or  flavoring  here  and  seasoning  there, 
touching  up  her  delicate  tidbits  for  an  hour  be- 
fore the  table  is  prepared.  Ha,  ha,  ha  !  The  cow- 
boys' dinner  is  twice  as  good ;  and  it  is  gotten 
without  wood  (and  often  wet  at  that),  without  a 
stove,  and  without  any  of  the  delicious  flavor- 
ings, and  is  forgotten  in  half  an  hour.  Why,  if 
a  cow-boy  had  to  wait  an  hour  for  dinner  he 
would  go  into  camp  and  kick  over  the  pots  and 
skillets,  and  then  step  off  and  see  how  close  he 
could  shoot  to  the  cook's  ear,  just  to  hurry  him 


186 


up  a  little.  Whenever  they  are  out  of  meat, 
they  shoot  down  a  nice  fat  calf,  and  always 
have  the  best.  It  is  seldom  that  they  kill  their 
own  brands;  but  when  there  is  no  maver- 
ick, they  slide  a  ball  into  another  man's  calf. 
Of  course  they  always  cut  out  the  brand  and  de- 
stroy it.  It  is  quite  pleasing  to  see  a  cow-outfit 
taking  dinner  upon  the  wide,  level  prairie,  with 
their  ponies  grazing  by  the  camp-side.  They  all 
get  around  the  hash,  which  sits  in  pans  and 
skillets,  and  then  crossing  their  legs  they  sit 
down  upon  their  feet.  This  is  the  cow-boys' 
seat;  and  when  they  come  into  a  house  where 
there  are  plenty  of  chairs  they  squat  to  the  floor 
upon  their  own  seats.  Hot  or  cold,  sunshine  or 
storm,  the  greater  part  of  the  year  they  sleep 
and  dine  upon  the  wild,  unsheltered  plain.  They 
are  so  used  to  it,  though,  that  they  think  nothing 
of  it,  and  stand  out  in  the  storrn  eating  their  bis- 
cuit and  broiled  beef  with  unqualified  relish. 
They  move  their  loose  ponies  from  place  to  place 
in  a  herd — each  boy  having  his  own  particular 
riding-horses.  When  camped  they  hobble  the 
leaders,  and  the  rest  will  not  leave.  The  hobble 
is  made  by  taking  a  piece  of  cow-hide  about 
three  feet  long  and  two  inches  wide,  tying  a 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  187 

knot  in  one  end,  and  cutting  a  loop  in  the  other. 
This  is  put  around  one  leg,  above  the  pasture- 
joint,  and  then  twisted  and  looped  around  the 
other.  The  twist  keeps  the  hobble  from  work- 
ing down,  and  the  horse  does  not  get  around  fast 
nor  leave  camp  far  unless  stampeded  by  Indians 
or  wild  horses ;  and  even  in  this  case  they  are 
easily  captured.  Some  of  the  ponies  are  very  shy, 
and  when  the  boys  want  fresh  horses  they  tie  a 
rope  to  a  wagon- wheel,  and  a  boy  holds  the  other 
end.  The  others  then  drive  the  herd  up  to  this 
and  throw  the  noose  over  the  heads  of  the  wanted 
ones.  They  are  so  used  to  this  rope  that  they 
will  not  attempt  to  cross  one  if  it  is  but  knee 
high.  All  idle  mules  are  always  hobbled ;  for 
the  cow-boys  say  "a  mule  is  hell  in  a  stampede." 
The  boys  of  course  do  their  own  washing ;  and 
they  usually  keep  pretty  clean,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  few  gray-backs,  which  are  their 
warmest  bosom  and  inseparable  friends.  Some 
companies  have  as  high  as  seventy-five  or  a 
hundred  men  employed  during  the  work-sea- 
son ;  and  about  the  first  of  December  they  dis- 
charge about  half  of  them  until  spring,  keeping 
the  best  men  over  winter,  and  they  are  scattered 
over  the  ranges  among  the  little  lonely  shanties 


188  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

to  watch  over  the  cows  during  winter.  They 
are  compelled  to  keep  some  men  who  under- 
stand the  business  and  the  country,  and  then 
they  can  make  use  of  some  greenhorns.  Bat  oh! 
how  those  cow-boys  curse  the  tender-feet.  They 
usually  try  to  get  them  upon  a  pony  that  under- 
stands bucking,  to  get  their  necks  broken  or  dis- 
able them  in  some  way  or  other  to  get  them  out 
of  the  way.  There  is  no  better  fun  than  to  get 
a  big,  clumsy  tender-foot  upon  a  well-trained 
cow-pony.  He  goes  dodging  along  like  a  mon- 
key, holding  to  the  saddle- horn,  with  his  stirrups 
shortened  up  and  his  knees  under  his  chin,  gap- 
ing in  every  direction.  Pretty  soon  a  steer 
dashes  from  the  herd  ;  the  pony,  quick  as  a  flash, 
springs  after  him  to  round  him  in.  The  steer 
dodges ;  the  pony  braces,  whirls  upon  his  hind 
feet,  and  starts  ofi  in  another  direction,  with  the 
tender-foot  hanging  upon  his  side  with  one  foot 
fast  in  the  stirrup,  the  other  leg  wrapped  around 
the  saddle-horn,  and  holding  to  the  mane  with 
both  hands.  With  a  loud  bellow  the  steer 
makes  another  whirl ;  the  pony  follows  in  a 
twinkle ;  and  this  time  the  grip  gives  way,  the 
leg  slips  over,  the  horn  ripping  the  cloth  and 
bruising  the  skin,  and  with  a  heavy  thud  ten- 


THROUGH    THE  WEST.  189 

der-foot  comes  to  the  ground,  and  after  rolling- 
over  fifteen  or  twenty  times  he  lies  upon  his 
belly  and  raises  his  head  to  see  if  the  steer  had 
run  over  the  pony  too.  The  hoys  are  usually 
slow  about  going  to  help  a  walloped  tender-foot,, 
for  fear  he  will  not  die  if  he  is  helped. 

Cow-boys  are  ranked  in  the  business  some- 
thing like  officers  in  the  army.  There  are  fore- 
men, bosses,  and  sub-bosses,  down  to  privates ; 
and  they  are  paid  according  to  their  experience 
and  ability.  Some  of  them  have  been  cow- 
punching — as  it  is  called — for  many  years,  and 
know  every  water  for  hundreds  of  miles  around; 
and,  of  course,  they  command  high  wages.  The 
common  boy  gets  twenty-five  and  thirty  dollars 
per  month  ;  and  the  wages  range  from  this  up 
to  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars.  Of 
course,  one  has  to  be  highly  experienced  to 
command  the  latter. 

Ponies,  riding-outfits,  beds,  etc.,  are  furnished 
by  the  companies ;  but  nearly  all  the  boys  have 
ponies  and  riding-rigs  of  their  own.  The  object 
of  this  will  be  explained  hereafter.  They  all 
furnish  their  own  fire-arms,  and  are  usually 
pretty  well  belted. 

There  are  large,  wealthy  firms  in  Texas — such 
as  Hunter  &  Evans,  and  others, — who  make  it  a 


190 


business  to  breed  cattle;  and  they  sell  to  the 
ranchmen  thousands  upon  thousands  of  stock- 
cattle  every  year.  They  usually  cross  the  short- 
horn with  the  long-horn ;  for  the  Texican,  while 
he  is  a  good  rustler  and  will  find  enough  to  live 
on  where  an  American  will  die,  does  not  fill  out 
well,  besides  being  usually  very  fierce  and  wild, 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  the  American  has 
the  set,  and  is  tame;  but  when  the  pasture  is 
poor  or  the  weather  severe  he  will  not  rustle  as 
hard  nor  feed  as  far  out  upon  the  range  as  the 
other. 

The  trail  comes  over  the  prairie,  from  Texas, 
by  Dodge  City,  Kansas,  and  goes  on  up  into  the 
Platte  country,  Nebraska.  This  trail  is  several 
hundred  miles  long,  and  is  divided  up  into  regu- 
lar drives ;  and  some  of  the  stretches  between 
waters  are  very  long.  It  has  been  used  for 
many  years,  and  is  worn  wide  and  deep.  Every 
spring  and  fall  these  stock-breeders  send  great 
herds  up  this  trail.  Sometimes  as  many  as 
twenty-five  thousand  are  strung  out  in  one  herd. 
At  these  seasons,  persons  wanting  cattle  gather 
along  the  trail  and  wait  for  a  herd.  The  herds 
are  composed  of  from  one  to  three  yearlings ; 
and  for  first  choice  the  usual  price  is  twelve  dol- 
lars, and  ranging  down  to  seven  dollars. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  191 

There  are  large  horse  companies  in  the  South, 
and  great  herds  of  ponies  are  also  driven  up  the 
trail  each  fall  and  spring.  They  sell  for  from 
twenty  to  fifty  dollars  per  head. 

Many  cattle  give  out  on  the  long  march,  and 
numerous  riding-ponies  get  their  backs  scalded 
and  rubbed  and  are  worn  down  weak  and  thin, 
and  can  be  bought  for  a  song ;  and  after  a  month 
or  two  of  rest  they  are  all  right. 

Many  new  wagons  are  brought  up  with  the 
herds  to  haul  the  necessary  supplies,  and,  not 
being  needed  for  the  return,  they  can  be  bought 
very  cheap,  from  the  inconvenience  of  running 
them  back  so  far.  There  are  persons  ranched 
along  this  trail  who  buy  the  worn-out  cattle  and 
ponies  and  the  wagons;  and  there  have  been 
fortunes  made  at  it. 

When  a  man  wants  to  go  into  the  cattle- 
business  and  does  not  know  the  country  well,  he 
finds  out  from  the  cow-boys  some  place  that  is 
unoccupied  and  that  would  make  a  good  cattle- 
range.  He  then  goes  there,  and  at  some  good 
place  builds  a  good  ranch  and  strong  corral, 
then  gets  a  branding-iron  made  and  procures  a 
wagon  and  camp  outfit,  ponies,  etc.,  and  then, 
hiring  an  experienced  man  to  manage  the  buei- 


192  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

ness,  he  goes  to  the  trail  during  one  of  the  afore- 
said seasons  and  buys  what  he  wants.  By  pay- 
ing twelve  dollars  per  head  he  gets  his  choice 
from  the  mighty  herd,  and  can  make  up  his  herd 
of  good  cattle  nearly  three  years  old.  Buying 
half  steers  and  half  heifers,  he  will  have,  the 
heifers  to  immediately  breed  from,  and  thereby 
have  some  steers  ready  for  market  in  one  year. 
This  will  pay  his  expenses.  The  next  year 
he  will  have  more  to  sell,  and  the  calves  will  be 
coming  on.  By  selling  every  marketable  steer 
each  fall  and  investing  the  money  in  young  cat- 
tle, it  is  not  long  until  the  herd  is  numerous  and 
the  shipments  can  be  great.  When  he  has  his 
herd  he  drives  them  upon  his  range,  and  hires 
some  boys  to  help  him  brand  them.  Two  strong 
posts  are  firmly  planted  in  the  corral,  about 
twelve  feet  apart,  and  part  of  the  herd  is  driven 
in  at  a  time.  A  boy  rides  in,  throws  his  rope 
over  the  horns  of  an  animal,  and,  all  under- 
standing their  business,  the  cow  is  soon  pulled 
upon  her  side.  A  rope  is  put  around  the  hind 
feet  and  wrapped  around  one  of  the  posts  and 
held  by  a  boy,  and  another  rope  is  put  around 
the  front  feet  and  wrapped  around  the  other 
post  and  held  by  another  boy,  while  the  brauder 
applies  the  iron. 


THROUGH  THE    WEST.  193 

This  branding  business  is  fine  sport  for  per- 
sons who  are  not  accustomed  to  seeing  it ;  and 
when  I  first  came  to  the  country  I  was  pres- 
ent on  all  such  occasions  when  possible.  The 
boys  used  to  let  me  lasso  the  cattle,  and 
took  great  pains  in  showing  me  how  it  was 
done;  and  at  length  it  was  a  small  job  to  catch 
a  cow,  still  or  running.  I  recollect  very  well  the 
first  branding  I  ever  attended.  The  boys  caught 
a  two-year-old  steer  and  threw  him  down,  and, 
putting  a  rope  around  the  hind  feet,  they  gave  it 
to  me  to  hold.  They  told  me  to  wrap  the  rope 
three  or  four  times  around  my  body  and  then 
turn  my  back  to  the  steer  and  pull  as  hard  as  I 
could,  and  I  could  hold  him  easily.  Well,  I 
had  seen  steers  enough  to  know  that  they 
could  kick  like  thunder.  But  I  thought  that 
perhaps  by  having  his  legs  pulled  straight  out 
behind  I  could  manage  him ;  and  I  was  pulling 
like  a  wheel-horse,  when  something  happened. 
There  was  a  sudden  jerk  from  back  toward 
the  steer,  and  a  loud  snort.  Then  I  whirled 
-round  so  fast  that  it  looked  as  though  there 
were  steers  all  around  me;  and  I  made  a  jump 
backward  that  beats  the  best  on  record.  When 
I  recovered  I  had  a  little  pain  in  the  stom- 

13 


194 


ach,  and  half  the  buttons  were  torn  off  my 
clothes ;  and  I  was  altogether  changed  about.  I 
tell  you,  boys,  you  can  have  your  own  opinion 
about  it,  but  I  believe  that  steer  would  have 
jerked  the  hind  end  of  the  world  out  if  he  had 
been  fastened  to  it.  I  wish  it  distinctly  under- 
stood that  whenever  there  is  a  red-hot  iron  to  be 
poked  against  a  steer's  skin  I  want  to  be  on  the 
side  where  there  are  no  legs. 

It  is  not  usually  much  of  a  job  to  catch  and 
throw  an  animal ;  but  sometimes  there  is  a  large, 
powerful,  wild  Texicari  in  the  bunch,  and  the 
boys  have  some  fun.  In  this  case  they  throw 
two  or  three  ropes  upon  the  animal,  and  the 
ponies  hold  him  fast.  When  the  herd  is  all 
branded  they  are  turned  upon  the  range;  and 
having  prepared  it,  he  takes  up  his  abode  in 
his  humble  little  ranch.  If  his  herd  is  not 
large,  he  and  his  little  help  can  ride  out  every 
day  to  look  after  the  cattle  and  keep  them  upon 
the  range,  and  his  herd  will  not  be  much  scat- 
tered in  the  spring. 

In  chosing  a  range  it  is  best,  if  possible,  to 
take  up  a  rough  part,  or  where  there  is  timber ; 
for  being  thus  sheltered  from  the  fierce  winter 
blasts,  the  cattle  are  not  apt  to  drift.  Of  course 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  195 

If  he  or  they  want  to  go  into  the  business  very 
largely,  it  will  be  necessary,  perhaps,  to  hunt 
several  ranges,  and  build  cabins  there  for  the 
boys. 

It  is  interesting  to  see  a  well-trained  pony 
play  his  part  in  the  roping  process.  He  watches 
the  lariat,  and  as  the  rider  throws  it  he  makes 
two  or  three  rapid  jumps  to  give  the  rope  slack, 
and  if  it  catches,  he  then  stops,  plants  his  feet  in 
the  sand,  and  turns  to  suit  the  cow.  A  small 
pony,  if  well  trained,  can  hold  a  good  steer  by 
the  horns  or  foot.  The  rider  can  dismount  and 
go  to  the  captive,  and  the  pony  will  do  the  hold- 
ing. Sometimes  the  animal  is  too  much,  howev- 
er, and  in  spite  of  his  greatest  efforts,  the  pony 
is  jerked  heavily  to  the  ground.  I  have  seen  the 
saddle  jerked  from  the  pony  and  taken  across 
the  prairie  by  the  horns  of  a  steer.  This  mostly 
happens  when  there  is  a  bad  throw,  and  the  ani- 
mal is  caught  around  the  neck  or  body.  The 
saddles,  as  has  been  said,  are  large  and  very 
heavy,  with  big  blankets  under  them,  so  that  the 
back- of  the  pony  is  never  injured  by  the  surges 
of  any  captive.  I  have  often  thought  of  the 
pieces  that  one  of  the  eastern  turtle-shell  saddles 
would  be  jerked  into  should  one  of  these  power- 


196 


ful  wild  steers  be  tied  to  the  horn.  The  catch- 
rope  has  a  knot  in  one  end  of  it,  and  when 
thrown  in  a  certain  way  it  will  lap  around  the 
foot  and  tie.  This  is  a  good  catch,  and  can  be 
done  at  a  dead  run  ;  but  it  requires  much  more 
skill  than  the  regular  noose-catch.  The  foot  is 
sometimes  caught  in  chase  with  the  noose ;  but 
this  requires  superior  skill,  and  the  Mexican  only 
can  practice  this  successfully.  In  cate  a  steer 
gets  cross,  or  is  wild  and  mean  about  going  into 
a  corral  or  stock-pen,  several  boys  dash  upon 
him,  some  throwing  their  ropes  around  his 
horns,  others  around  his  feet,  and  others  around 
his  neck  and  tail,  and  with  a  whoop  they  drag 
him  in.  I  have  seen  fifteen-hundred-pound 
steers  dragged  in  this  way.  These  ponies  would 
pull  nothing  by  a  collar;  but  they  are  trained  to 
pull  by  the  saddle,  and  can  draw  a  big  load  that 
way.  Cow-boys  often  pull  emigrant  wagons  out 
of  streams  and  sloughs,  where  good  teams  have 
left  them  stand.  Of  course  this  roping  all  re- 
quires practice,  and  the  skill  that  may  be  ac- 
quired at  it  would  astonish  one  who  had  never 
seen  the  performance  here  upon  the  prairie. 
Sometime  a  single  and  lone  cow-boy  is  crossing 
the  prairie,  and  happens  to  run  across  a  two  or 


THROUGH    THE    WEST. 


197 


three  year  old  that  in  some  way  has  been  missed. 
Riding  upon  it  he  ropes  it ;  and  while  the  pony 
holds  it  he  takes  his  knife  and  marks  the  ear, 
and  brands  it  by  cutting  the  hair  to  the  skin  in 
the  brand  shape.  This  will  stay  until  branding 
season,  and  then  it  can  be  done  over. 

Great  flocks  of  sheep  are  also  raised  out  here, 
and  it  is  said  that  there  is  much  more  profit  in 
them  than  in  cattle,  ordinarily.  But  the  risk  is 
much  greater,  as  in  case  of  a  severe  winter,  like 
sometimes  visit  the  prairie,  many  of  them  die; 
for  there  is  no  chance  to  shelter  or  feed  them 
like  in  the  East  among  barns  and  stocks.  Ex- 
perienced stock-men  say  that  sheep  usually  pay 
from  seventy-five  to  one  hundred  per  cent  upon 
the  investment,  and  cattle  from  forty  to  sixty 
per  cent.  But  of  course  this  varies  a  good  deal 
according  to  the  season.  There  is  an  amalgam 
here  called  the  greaser,  who  is  part  Mexican, 
Indian,  and  negro,  and  they  do  most  of  the 
sheep-raising.  They  have  straight  black  hair, 
very  dark  complexion,  and  are  extremely  wicked 
and  cruel.  They  are  very  filthy,  and  hence  the 
name  greaser.  They  use  the  donkey,  or  burro, 
and  pack  from  place  to  place.  To  see  them  with 
their  nocks  and  asses  upon  the  hill-side  is  sug- 


198  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

gestive  of  ancient  times,  and  causes  one  to  think 
of  flocks  and  herds  upon  the  plains  of  historical 
Europe  and  Asia.  In  order  that  all  my  readers 
may  know  the  nature  of  these  vile  and  odious- 
specimens  of  humanity,  I  will  describe  them  as- 
the  ugliest,  meanest,  most  slovenly,  cruel,  treach- 
erous, and  quarrelsome  beings  I  ever  saw.  Each 
greaser  carries  a  large  knife ;  and  you  bet 
he  knows  how  to  use  it.  He  can  throw  it  into 
a  man's  body  at  the  distance  of  tea  feet  every 
time;  and  upon  the  least  provocation,  if  close 
enough,  he  will  cut  your  jugular- vein  the  first 
whack.  They  sometimes  move  their  flocks 
upon  the  stock-ranges,  and  any  one  acquainted 
with  sheep  knows  the  condition  in  which  pasture 
is  left  after  several  thousand  sheep  have  ranged 
over  it.  This  enrages  the  cattle- men,  and  they 
send  cow-boys  to  move  them  off.  There  have 
been  many  bitter  battles  fought  between  these 
parties  for  this  cause,  and  many  a  Mexican  has 
bitten  the  dust  and  had  his  flock  scattered  and 
destroyed.  When  cow-boys  start  out  to  do  any- 
thing that  can  be  done  with  six-shooters,  they 
usually  do  it;  and  could  the  bleaching  Mexican 
skeletons  but  speak,  the  truth  of  the  assertion 
would  only  be  too  well  evidenced. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  199 

Most  persons  have  heard  of  the  Texas  cattle- 
fever  and  its  terrible  ravages.  It  is  almost  en- 
tirely confined  to  the  regions  along  the  trail; 
and  though  not  often  the  case,  it  is  some 
years  very  destructive,  and  hundreds  of  cattle 
are  stretched  out  dead  upon  either  side  of  the 
trail,  and  stock-men  are  afraid  to  buy.  Stock 
can  then  be  bought  cheap.  There  is  much 
speculation  as  to  what  this  disease  is ;  and  many 
theories  have  been  advanced  by  scientific  men  as 
to  its  cause,  and  whether  it  is  contagious.  The 
following  is  one  of  the  theories;  and  to  me  it 
seems  the  most  plausible  :  In  driving  the  cattle 
so  far  through  the  hot  sand,  their  feet  become 
sore  and  fester;  and  when  they  are  halted  by 
the  drivers  and  left  graze  out  upon  the  range 
the  matter  from  their  feet  is  imparted  and  de- 
posited on  the  grass,  and  this  grass  being 
eaten  by  the  cattle  causes  the  affection.  Others 
say  that  it  is  a  regular  disease,  that  it  originated 
in  Texas,  and  that  it  is  contagious.  But  I  have 
observed  that  the  disease  is  not  prevalent  in 
Texas  or  any  other  country  except  the  ranges 
along  the  trail.  I  have  also  observed  that  the 
disease  is  not  contagious  if  cattle  are  not  left 
graze  upon  the  same  range  too  soon  after  coming 


200  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

off'  the  trail.  The  cattle  that  are  once  badly 
affected  with  the  disease  seldom  do  much  good 
afterward. 

The  stock-business  being  the  almost  exclusive 
occupation  of  the  people  upon  the  vast  western 
prairie  world,  which  to  this  is  so  particularly 
adapted,  I  hope  I  have  been  justified  in  treating 
of  this  subject  at  so  great  length.  I  have  tried 
to  picture  the  country  in  the  imagination  of  per- 
sons (who  have  never  been  here)  as  it  really  is, 
and  to  satisfy  the  curiosity  of  those  who  have 
heard  so  much  of  the  great  western  herds,  as 
well  as  to  inform  those  who  would  wish  to  en- 
gage in  the  business  upon  the  vast  free  domain. 
Thinking  that  perhaps  the  subject  has  been  suf- 
ficiently spoken  of  I  shall  conclude,  and  refer  the 
reader  to  the  closing  letters  of  this  work  for 
further  information. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  201 


CHAPTER    VI.  , 

Cow-Boy  History— Mustangs  and  Broncos— Cow-Boys  with 
Six-Shooters—Dodge  City— Boot  Grave-yard— Prairie  Mys- 
teries—Dance-Halls— Sketch  of  Buffalo  Bill— Theory  of  the 
Plains — Trading-House — Antelope  Chase — We  Prepare  for 
a  Mountain  Tour. 

Most  persons  of  ordinary  information  have 
heard  something  of  the  character  of  the  popula- 
tion of  the  great  American  plains,  and  have  ob- 
served that  the  cow-boys  have  had  their  share  of 
attention  and  comment.  From  actual  observa- 
tions made  during  my  long  roam  upon  the  prai- 
ries I  feel  able  to  contribute  a  few  lines  that  will 
no  doubt  be  interesting  to  persons  who  have 
read  such  speculative  and  varied  accounts,  and 
who  wish  to  be  well  and  truly  informed. 

The  great  country  that  has  been  described  as 
adapted  to  no  other  purpose  than  stock-rais- 
ing is  necessarily  almost  exclusively  populated 
with  cow-men  ;  and,  without  legal  restraint,  the 
prairie  fairly  trembles  with  their  power.  I  am 
personally  acquainted  with  many  of  the  boys ; 
and  while  I  have  many  warm  friends  among 


202 


them,  I  also  have  some  deadly  enemies.  I  have 
studied  their  dispositions,  and,  by  the  instrument 
of  warmest  confidence,  have  drawn  from  their 
bosoms  many  dark  and  hidden  secrets.  When 
a  person  takes  into  consideration  the  position 
and  surroundings  of  these  boys,  he  is  not  aston- 
ished at  the  almost  uuexceptionably  bold,  bestial, 
and  immoral  character  of  these  creatures  of  the 
broad  western  wilds.  In  civilized  and  Christian- 
ized regions,  if  a  person  be  disposed  to  be  rough 
and  immoral — though  he  often  meets  those  of 
like  disposition  and  is  encouraged, — he  must  and 
will9  from  time  to  time,  come  in  contact  with 
those  whom  the  faintest  throbbings  of  natural 
manhood  will  move  him  to  respect;  for  instance, 
the  sweet  smile  or  the  soft,  silver-toned  word 
from  the  lips  of  a  kind  female  or  the  address  of 
a  noble  man.  As  he  walks  the  streets  by  the 
dim  light  of  the  gas-lamp,  profaning  the  Sab- 
bath or  planning  dark  vices,  the  sweet  strains 
from  the  lips  of  the  worshipers  away  up  in  the 
tabernacle  will  waft  out  of  the  open  window 
upon  the  soft  evening  zephyrs  and  irresistibly 
appeal  to  his  faint  sensibilities.  The  voice  of  the 
good  minister  is  heard ;  and  though  the  heart  be 
mailed  with  a  coat  of  evil  and  the  spark  of  ce- 


THROUGH    THE  WEST.  203 

lestial  fire  called  conscience  be  almost  smothered, 
these  soft  influences  are  felt  and  are  fuel  to  the 
fire  of  man's  natural  sensibilities.  And  back  of 
all  this  is  the  strong  hand  of  the  law,  backed  by 
public  sentiment,  with  which  the  latitude  of 
man's  privileges  is  measured  out.  The  checks 
are  so  many  and  so  great  that  it  is  some  time  be- 
fore the  conscience  of  man  can  be  overcome  by 
the  rolling  waves  of  immoral  and  iniquitous 
temptations.  But  it  is  quite  otherwise  in  the 
unsettled  country  where  the  musical  strains  do- 
not  reach  nor  the  words  of  the  gospel  sound, 
and  where  the  sweet  influence  of  womanhood  is 
not  shed,  and  worst  of  all,  where  the  law  is  the 
will  and  the  might  makes  the  right.  There  is 
nothing  to  stay  the  degeneration  into  which 
mankind  is  naturally  so  prone  to  drift ;  and  in 
several  years'  life  with  such  surroundings  the 
sensibilities  of  man  become  as  callous  as  a  stone. 
The  very  atmosphere  is  impregnated  with  pro- 
fanity, and  new-comers  can  seldom  resist  the 
epidemic.  Many  of  these  boys  stay  alone  away 
out  upon  distant  ranges  for  several  months  at  a 
stretch  without  seeing  a  human  being,  with  the 
howl  of  the  wolf  and  the  angry  growl  of  the 
wild  beasts  constantly  floating  upon  the  prairie 


204 


breeze,  and  the  monotony  broken  now  and  then 
by  the  war-whoop  of  the  treacherous  red-man, 
who  cruises  upon  the  plain  beneath  his  white 
plume,  seeking  the  lives  and  scalps  of  the  lone 
boys.  The  effect  of  a  life  in  the  open  air,  and  a 
diet  of  wild  meats,  together  with  the  influences 
of  an  unsettled  country,  I  have  already  felt  by 
actual  experience;  and  he  who  has  described  the 
wickedness  and  boldness  of  the  cow-boy  in  the 
strongest  language  I  will  assure  you  is  not 
guilty  of  exaggeration,  for  indeed  they  are  sav- 
ages. They  do  most  all  their  work  upon  horse- 
back ;  and  being  in  the  saddle  every  day,  they 
are  so  expert  at  equestrianism  that  it  is  amusing 
to  see  them  ride.  They  walk  so  little  that  the 
muscles  of  their  legs  are  very  weak,  and  on  foot 
they  can  do  very  little.  They  always  keep  a 
pony  picketed  close  by,  and  if  they  want  to  go  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  the  pony  is  saddled. 

The  bronco  is  a  California  pony,  and  the  mus- 
tang is  a  pony  that  was  found  upon  the  plains  of 
Mexico.  Both  these  breeds  are  used  by  COW- 
IP  en  ;  and  they  are,  with  few  exceptions,  very 
hard  to  break.  They  are  natural  buckers ;  and 
some  of  them  never  forget  it,  and  take  a  heat  at 
it  after  being  rode  for  several  years ;  that  is, 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  205- 

they  put  their  head  between  their  knees,   stick 
out  their  tails,  and  then  begin  to  jump  stiff-leg- 
ged.    The  first  lunge   will  perhaps   be   four   or 
five  feet  forward,  the  next  several  feet  backward, 
then  from  side  to  side,  and  all  the  while  bawling- 
like  an  ox.     They  sometimes  begin  as  soon   as- 
the  sinch  is  drawn  and  before  it  is  fastened,  and 
tearing  furiously  from  the  boy  they  buck   over 
the  plain  until  the  saddle  comes  off  or  until  they 
are  Entirely  exhausted.     It  is  a  curious   habit, 
but  it  appears  to  be  natural  with  them ;  and  if 
any  person  takes  it  to  be  an  agreeable  exercise 
to  back  one   of  these  professional  buckers,  he 
should  try  it  on  once,  and  I  will  assure  him  that 
one  fall  upon  the  back  of  the  neck  will  be  suffi- 
cient to  convince  him  that  he  was  mistaken.     It 
takes  practice  to  be  able  to  ride  one  of  these  fel- 
lows; and  men  considered  good  riders  in  the  East 
are  tipped  by  these  ponies  as  easily   as   a  stone 
from  a  slippery  log.     To   see   a  big  tender-foot 
back  a  bucker  is   about   as   funny  a  thing   as  I 
ever  witnessed.     The  first  jump  the  boy  pops  up 
about  six  inches,  the   next   a  foot,  and  so   on. 
Soon  he  pops  up  so  high  that  the  pony  gets  one 
pop  ahead  of  him,  and  when  he  comes  down  the 
pony  is  gone ;  and  with  a  thud  he  comes  to  the 


206 


ground,  usually  upon  the  back  of  his  shoulders, 
with  his  feet  gesticulating  wildly  in  the  direc- 
tion he  came  from.  These  boys  are  so  well  up 
to  them,  however,  that  they  do  not  think  much 
about  it,  ordinarily,  though  there  is  one  some- 
times that  it  takes  the  best  rider  to  stick.  I  saw 
a  boy  mount  a  pony  that  it  was  said  could  not  be 
rode,  while  he  said  he  could  not  be  thrown. 
The  pony  began  his  wickedest ;  and  such  buck- 
ing I  never  saw.  He  bucked  for  full  fifteen 
minutes,  and  was  worried  down.  The  blood 
was  gushing  from  the  mouth  and  nose  of  the 
rider.  The  powerful  jerking  had  almost  ruined 
him ;  and  of  the  effects  of  that  ride  he  said  he 
never  expected  to  be  cured.  "But,"  said  he,  "in 
all  my  riding-experiences  in  fifteen  years  upon 
the  prairie,  I  never  backed  the  like."  Now, 
when  a  little  mule  once  learns  to  buck,  he  is  what 
the  cow-boys  call  double-geared  lightning;  for 
this,  with  the  natural-born  ability  of  the  mule, 
enables  him  to  come  as  near  playing  hell  as  is 
possible  without  using  the  real  material ;  and  a 
person  who  did  not  see  him  begin  would  swear 
it  was  a  herd  of  mules  dashing  around,  so  nu- 
merous and  violent  are  his  maneuvers.  When  a 
wild  pony  is  to  be  broken  he  is  roped,  a  saddle 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  207 

strapped  upon  him,  and  the  rider  takes  his  seat. 
He  is  then  turned  loose  upon  the  prairie  to  cut 
capers,  while  the  other  boys  ride  after  him  to 
keep  from  going  too  far,  or  from  jumping  into 
bogs  or  gutters.  As  they  come  dashing  over 
the  prairie  whooping  and  hallooing,  the  pony 
bucking  and  bawling,  and  the  rider  applying 
his  big  spurs,  the  sight  is  grand  ;  and  it  is  sel- 
dom one  of  these  boys  is  moved  from  his  seat. 
When  the  pony  is  worried  out,  he  then  puts  a 
bridle  on  him  and  drills  him.  Of  course  it 
would  be  impossible  to  ride  these  fellows  with 
the  saddles  that  are  used  in  the  states.  But,  as 
has  been  said,  these  saddles  are  large,  the  horn 
is  high,  and  when  mounting  a  bad  pony  a  roll  of 
blankets  is  tied  upon  the  saddle-skirt,  and  it  is 
difficult  to  get  a  rider  from  his  seat.  Some  of 
these  boys  have  been  almost  born  in  the  saddle ; 
and  riding  so  much,  they  are  so  bow-legged  they 
can  hardly  walk.  I  have  seen  these  boys  ride 
along  on  a  dead  run  and  grab  up  in  succession 
four  and  five  silver  dollars  that  were  laid  upon 
the  ground  fifty  yards  apart.  They  become  very 
venturesome  and  mischievous,  and  sometimes  catch 
the  big-horned  Texas  steers,  jump  upon  their 
backs,  pull  their  tail  up  over  the  shoulder,  and 


208  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

my,  oh !  what  a  time  !     The  steer  bounds  away 
snorting,  bucking,  and  bellowing;   but  in  spite 
of  his  efforts  the  boy  holds   on   to   the  tail  and 
keeps  his  seat.     When   they  want   some   milk 
they  ride  out  and  rope  a   cow ;    and   while   the 
pony  holds  the  cow  they  milk  what  they  want. 
From  so  much  practice,  these  boys  are  as  expert 
with  the  six-shooter  as  with  the  pony;  and  per- 
sons considering  themselves  good  shots  should 
not  brand  themselves  superior  until  once  shoot- 
ing a  round  or  two   with  a  cow-boy.     I  have 
seen  boys  ride  over  the  river  bridge  at  Granada, 
and  at  a  dead  run  shoot  two  and  three  glass 
telegraph   insulators   from  the    railing    in    one 
round  from  the  six-shooter.     They  practice  this 
so  much  that  they  can  shoot  better  from  a  pony 
than  from  the  ground.     Some  have  the  cells  filed 
out,  so  that  the  firing  can  be  done  more  rapidly. 
There  are  saloons  all  along  the  railroads  and  cat- 
tle-trails, and  when  the  boys  are  out  alone  upon 
the  range  for  some  time  they  feel  like  having  a 
picnic  when   getting  to  where   somebody  lives. 
They  are  usually  very  liberal  when  they  have 
money,  and  everybody  present  is  called   on  to 
"  come  up  and  represent."     Whisky  is  consider- 
ed the  grace  of  God  in  this  country,  and  of  course 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  209 

it  is  very  seldom  refused.  £Tow,  if  there  are  sev- 
eral together,  a  few  drinks  about  makes  happi- 
ness full;  and  the  ball  then  opens.  The  boys  all 
draw  good  wages,  their  expenses  are  light,  and 
most  of  them  aim  to  spend  in  saloons  every  dol- 
lar that  is  not  needed  for  actual  necessaries. 
They  often  draw  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  dol- 
lars at  once,  and  spend  every  dollar  of  it  before 
leaving  a  saloon.  There  are  men  making  fort- 
unes off' the  cow-boys  to-day.  There  are  profes- 
sional gamblers  lurking  around  most  of  these 
frontier  saloons,  and  they  watch  to  intoxicate  the 
boys  and  then  play  them  out  of  their  money. 
Though  the  game  be  begun  in  the  best  of  hu- 
mor, it  is  usual  for  each  man  to  lay  his  six-shooter 
at  his  side ;  and  the  maxim  is,  mind  your  eye. 
As  long  as  everything  is  done  squarely  there  is 
no  trouble;  but  the  first  man  that  is  caught 
tricking  is  in  hot  quarters;  and  I  have  seen  some 
deadly  battles  without  one  word  spoken.  Some- 
times the  gamblers  entirely  strip  the  boys,  and 
with  an  understanding,  when  there  is  a  large  pot, 
they  point  the  six-shooters  at  the  gamblers' 
heads  and  pull  in  the  pile. 

Some  years  ago  Dodge  City,  Kansas,  was  giv- 
en up  to  be  the  roughest  and  most  wicked  place 

14 


210  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

in  the  United  States.  It  is  situated  right  where 
the  Texas  trail  crosses  the  railroad,  and  was  a 
regular  stock-center.  Numbers  of  cow-boys 
were  constantly  going  in  and  out,  and  whole 
dens  of  gamblers  and  prostitutes  were  quartered 
here  for  lucre.  The  population  being  composed 
of  such  beings,  and  the  clash  of  the  six-shooter 
being  the  voice  of  the  law,  the  vilest  conse- 
quences are  but  natural.  Ah!  many  a  man 
played  his  last  game  here,  and  mingled  his  dy- 
ing-breath with  the  lurid  smoke  of  the  six- 
shooters.  Men  were  shot  down  like  dogs,  and 
buried  as  they  fell,  red  with  gore  and  horribly 
mangled. 

There  is  at  this  place  a  yard  called  the  Boot 
Grave-yard,  a  place  well  known  to  all  western 
men,  and  called  thus  from  the  fact  that  thirty- 
eight  men  have  been  buried  here  with  their 
boots  on.  There  was  scarcely  a  day  that  there 
was  not  a  riot  in  town  among  the  cow-boys,  or 
between  the  cow-boys  and  gamblers;  and  of 
course  shooting  and  cutting  was  the  consequence. 
Emigrants  passing  through  with  wagons,  and 
not  knowing  the  place,  were  decoyed  into  dark 
places  and  robbed.  Passengers  from  the  trains, 
on  going  in  for  refreshments  and  showing  any 


THROUGH  THE   WEST.  211 

amount  of  money,  were  trapped  and  robbed, 
and  were  killed  upon  resistance.  You  are  a 
stranger  in  the  country,  and  they  are  all  cliqued 
together ;  and  what  are  you  to  do  ?  If  you  go 
to  making  much  trouble,  or  get  to  shooting  oft 
your  mouth,  the  consequences  can  be  imagined. 
Even  when  there  are  officers,  they  are  not  able 
to  command  order;  for  the  first  day  they  try  it 
a  ball  from  some  unknown  villain  will  strike 
him.  Hence  the  officers  are  usually  cliqued 
with  the  desperadoes.  The  easier  a  person  can 
get  out  of  these  places  the  better;  for  the  officers 
themselves  will  put  you  into  a  dungeon  for  the 
gamblers  to  rob  you. 

Fully  one  half  the  gamblers  and  cow-boys  of 
the  West  are  persons  who  have  committed  dark 
crimes  and  fled  thither  to  escape  justice;  and 
wickedness,  when  once  launched,  will  find  in 
this  country  easy  sailing. 

As  has  been  said,  almost  every  cow-boy  has 
one  pony  and  riding-rig  of  his  own.  In  case 
he  should  come  into  a  place  and  kill  somebody, 
this  pony  is  calculated  to  skip  with  to  another 
part,  thereby  avoiding  the^necessitygof  riding  oft 
one  of  the  company's  horses. 

The  regular  initiation  to  the  cow-boys'  society 
13  three  murders ;  and  when  Jthey  find  that  you 


212 

are  good  stuff',  and  will  shoot  without  ceremony, 
you  are  one  of  the  boys;  and  you  may  depend 
upon  it  that  you  have  friends  who  will  stand  by 
you  in  the  hours  of  darkest  danger.  But  if  you 
prove  to  be  a  brag  and  a  coivard,  your  misfor- 
tunes are  laughed  at. 

If  a  criminal  is  pursued,  and  he  can  reach  the 
banks  of  the  Arkansas  River  anywhere  west  of 
Dodge  City,  and  then  understands  the  plains,  he 
is  as  safe  as  though  he  were  in  an  uninhabited 
land.  Or  if  he  does  not  understand  the  prairie, 
and  goes  to  a  cow-camp  and  tells  the  boys  what 
is  up,  if  he  has  the  right  appearance  one  of  them 
will  mount  a  pony  and  give  him  one,  and  lope 
across  to  another  range.  Persons  who  do  not 
know  the  country  can  not  follow  a  person  here  : 
and  if  it  is  tried,  and  you  do  not  perish  from 
thirst,  death  will  meet  you  in  some  way — you  can 
rest  assured  of  that.  Telegraph-wires  and  offi- 
cers of  the  law  are  of  little  avail  here  in  running 
down  a  felon ;  and  if  a  person  keeps  on  his 
guard,  and  stays  upon  the  range  away  from  the 
towns,  there  is  no  danger  of  ever  being  taken. 

Many  of  the  boys  are  never  caught  off  their 
guard,  and  the  belt  is  upon  them  at  the  board 
and  in  the  bed.  They  are  ever  prepared.  Every 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  213 

stranger    is    watched   with  an   eagle  eye,  and 
the  least  suspicion  is  nipped  in  the  bud. 

There  was  one  boy  who  had  been  upon  the 
plains  for  several  years,  and  who  had  proved 
himself  a  hero.  He  had  committed  murder  in 
Alabama  and  fled  from  justice,  and  a  New  York 
detective  had  been  employed  to  hunt  him  down ; 
but  it  was  some  years  before  a  clue  could  be 
found.  He  one  night  came  to  the  home  of 
the  widowed  mother,  and  passing  himself  off  as 
a  peddler  not  long  from  Germany,  in  a  long, 
cunning  conversation  he  obtained  a  slight  trace 
of  the  felon  son ;  and  at  length  he  trailed  him  to 
the  Colorado  plains.  He  learned  that  he  was 
cow-punching;  and  the  only  way  to  get  him 
was  to  cow-punch  too.  So,  rigging  himself  out 
in  a  cow-boy's  dress,  he  hired  to  a  company  and 
went  to  work.  He  was  at  the  business  several 
weeks,  and  at  length  came  across  his  man.  He 
had  been  very  careful  about  every  word  and  mo- 
tion, and,  assuming  a  careless  appearance,  he 
was  not  in  the  least  suspicioned.  He  knew  he 
was  in  a  dangerous  position ;  for  if  the  cow-boys 
even  mistrusted  him  he  would  be  shot.  But 
with  great  cunning  and  ingenuity  he  had  avoid- 
ed all  suspicion ;  and  after  awhile  he  became 


214  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

quite  intimate,  and  was  taken  into  the  cow-boy's 
confidence.  He  watched  his  opportunity,  and 
was  alone  with  his  man  upon  the  Tepee,  in 
Texas,  one  beautiful  summer's  eve;  and  they 
both  stooped  to  drink  from  the  little  stream. 
The  detective  was  careful  to  arise  first,  and 
drawing  his  six-shooter  he  leveled  it  upon  his 
man,  and  as  he  rose  said,  "Surrender,  and  be 
quiet ;  for  you  are  my  prisoner."  Quick  as  a 
flash  the  cow-boy  saw  his  position,  and  resolved 
to  make  the  most  of  it.  Maintaining  his  pres- 
ence of  mind  he  coolly  remarked,  "  Well,  I  sup- 
pose you  want  my  arms."  The  detective,  not 
realizing  his  real  danger,  and  not  considering 
the  cow-boy's  dexterity  with  a  pistol,  assented 
to  the  boy  handing  him  the  pistol,  but  kept  his 
aim.  The  six-shooter  was  drawn  from  the  scab- 
bard, the  fore-finger  was  slipped  into  the  guard 
in  front  of  the  trigger,  and,  taking  the  pistol  by 
the  barrel,  he  reached  it  to  the  detective ;  and 
as  he  let  down  his  own  arm  and  reached  for  the 
extended  weapon  the  cowr-boy  whirled  the  six- 
shooter,  caught  the  handle,  and  in  a  twinkling  a 
ball  was  sent  whizzing  through  the  body  of  the 
detective ;  and  he  lay  pouring  his  life-blood 
upon  the  green  bank  of  the  Tepee,  at  the  very 
feet  of  his  intended  victim. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  215 

It  was  only  by  long  acquaintance  and  the 
most  perfect  confidence  that  I  was  intrusted 
with  these  secrets.  I  passed  by  the  dead  body 
before  the  color  had  quite  left  the  cheeks.  He 
was  a  fine-looking  man,  with  an  intellectual  ap- 
pearance ;  but,  lest  he  should  give  himself  away, 
he  had  cleaned  out  his  pockets,  and  there  was 
not  even  a  paper  by  which  his  name  could  be 
ascertained.  There  may  be  a  good  woman  and 
loving  family  somewhere  in  New  York  to-day 
waiting  for  the  return  of  a  long- absented  loved 
one ;  but  God  forbid  that  it  should  be  he  whose 
bones  lie  bleaching  on  the  banks  of  the  Tepee. 
There  are  many  such  cases;  and  could  the 
ghastly  skulls  but  tell  their  tales,  great  volumes 
could  be  written  of  what  will  ever  remain  a  deep 
secret. 

Persons  traveling  over  the  plains  will  from 
time  to  time  come  upon  human  remains,  some 
but  partially  decomposed  and  others  disarticu- 
lated skeletons.  A  few  miles  north  of  the  Ar- 
kansas River,  in  eastern  Colorado,  there  is  a 
long,  deep  hollow  that  from  the  great  number  of 
skeletons  found  therein  is  called  Dead  Man's 
Arroyo.  They  appear  to  have  been  there  for 
many  years ;  but  there  is  not  a  mark  upon  the 


216 


valley  rocks  or  spirit-whisper  in  the  soft  air  to 
tell  the  sad  tale.  It  is  supposed  that  a  hunting 
outfit  was  surprised  at  night  and  murdered  by 
the  Indians. 

"While  hunting  in  the  pan-handle  country,  we 
found  the  skeletons  of  four  ponies  lying  in  a  cir- 
cle, and  a  human  skeleton  (apparently  a  negro) 
lying  among  them.  There  were  seventy-two 
Winchester  cartridge-shells  by  his  side;  and  it 
is  thought  that  he  was  attacked  by  Indians,  and 
for  shelter  shot  down  all  his  ponies,  then  fought 
off  his  enemies  until  his  ammunition  was  ex- 
hausted, and  died  by  a  cruel  hand.  I  have  spent 
many  interesting  hours  in  the  careful  investiga- 
tion of  these  mysteries,  and  surmising  the  causes 
and  means  by  which  these  results  were  effected. 
From  the  fact  that  crime  can  be  committed  in 
the  silence  of  the  lonely  plain,  with  so  little  dan- 
ger of  ever  being  discovered  (the  body  often 
wasting  to  a  skeleton  before  being  discovered), 
there  are  many  cold-blooded  killings.  When 
the  least  difficulty  occurs  among  persons  here, 
the  arbitrator  is  almost  invariably  the  six- 
shooter. 

There  are  dance-halls  in  many  of  the  little 
towns  within  the  cow-boy's  range.  They  are 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  217 

usually  built  of  sod  or  adobe,  and  are  about  fifty 
feet  long  and  thirty  feet  wide.  In  one  corner 
there  is  a  bar;  and  in  the  back  end  of  the  build- 
ing are  several  small  rooms  in  which  stay  the  fe- 
male dancers.  They  are  usually  Mexican  girls. 
Musicians  are  employed  to  stay  here  all  the 
time;  and  every  night  some  of  the  cow-boys, 
Mexicans,  or  miners  come  in, — often  from  twenty 
and  thirty  miles, — for  a  dance.  At  the  end  of 
each  set  each  boy  must  take  his  partner  to  the 
bar.  Drinks  and  cigars  are  usually  two  bits 
apiece,  and  the  lowest  is  fifteen  cents  apiece  or 
two  for  two  bits.  If  it  is  found  out  that  there 
are  boys  in  who  have  much  money,  the  bar- 
keeper posts  the  musicians  and  the  sets  are  cut 
very  short.  As  long  as  the  boys  will  spend 
money  the  dance  is  kept  up,  if  it  is  all  , night; 
but  so  soon  as  the  money  stops  the  dance  stops. 
The  profits  are  large,  and  among  these  reckless 
boys  a  shrewd  hall-man  often  clears  from  one 
hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred  dollars  in  a 
single  night.  Knowing  the  character  and  dis- 
position of  the  persons  who  attend  these  balls, 
and  considering  the  attending  circumstances 
upon  these  occasions,  the  scenes  can  be  readily 
imagined.  Desperadoes  gather  in  from  all  di- 


218  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

rectious,  boys  meet  here  to  settle  quarrels,  and 
cow-boys  and  Mexicans  being  natural  enemies, 
there  are  often  mighty  lively  times.  Each  boy 
is  ambitious  to  be  a  bad  man;  and  after  they  get 
pretty  well  fired  with  liquor  the  recklessness 
commences  and  the  wild  spirit  begins  to  glitter. 
Six-shooters  are  jerked,  knives  are  drawn,  and 
with  wild  yells  bottles  and  glasses  are  shot  from 
the  bar,  lights  are  fired  down,  and  the  basest 
profanity  floats  out  of  the  appertures  of  the 
earthly  hell  upon  the  prairie  breeze.  Old 
grudges  are  stirred  up,  bullies  try  to  pick  a 
quarrel  from  others  and  then  strike  them  down 
and  try  to  run  the  house.  One  boy  will  im- 
agine himself  insulted  by  some  other,  and  get- 
ting his  friends  together  a  fight  is  begun.  Boys 
are  shot  down  upon  the  dancing-floor,  and  each 
man  tries  to  be  the  bloodiest.  The  consequences 
of  these  wicked  balls  are  often  very  bitter,  and 
there  are  some  sickening  scenes  to  be  viewed  in 
the  morning  light.  I  recollect  being  at  Las 
Animas,  Colorado,  one  night  when  there  was  a 
dance  at  the  old  Alhambra  (a  Mexican  dance- 
hall),  and  I  went  to  the  ball  to  see  how  things 
were  carried  on  and  to  learn  the  Colorado  styles. 
I  got  there  early  in  the  evening,  and  the  Mexi- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  219 

cans  were  having  a  big  fandango  in  six-eight 
time.  About  nine  o'clock  the  cow-boys  began 
to  gather  in,  when  things  began  to  warm  up  and 
the  scene  put  on  a  new  aspect.  The  cow-boys 
got  wild  with  liquor,  and  riding  around  the  hall 
yelling  and  shooting,  they  made  the  old  adobe 
dust  fly  like  sand  in  a  hurricane.  Bullets 
whistled  in  every  direction,  and  when  one  cut 
through  my  beard  I  concluded  things  were  get- 
ting a  little  warm;  but  wanting  to  see  it  all,  I 
got  behind  the  bar  with  the  tender.  There  were 
a  good  many  Mexicans  in  the  hall,  and  the  two 
parties  uegan  to  contend  for  the  house.  There 
were  two  doors  in  front,  laid  three  boys  arranged 
themselves  in  a  line  at  either  door.  The  doors 
were  then  thrown  open  by  others,  and  leaning 
low  upon  the  ponies,  the  six  boys  plunged  their 
spurs  into  the  sides  of  their  animals  and  like  a 
flash  rushed  into  the  house.  They  rode  up  to 
the  lights  and  struck  them  down  with  their  six- 
shooters  ;  and  then  in  the  darkness  the  bloody 
contest  was  hand-to-hand.  The  women  scream- 
ed, the  horses  snorted,  the  cow-boys  shot,  and 
the  Mexicans  cut.  I  knew  the  contest  was 
bloody,  and  I  was  anxious  to  know  how  the 
thing  was  coming  on ;  but  the  horses  were  pranc- 


220  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

ing  around  so  furiously,  and  it  was  too  dark  to 
dodge  the  bullets  that  were  flying  like  rocks  in 
an  earthquake,  so  I  kept  behind  the  bar  and 
waited  for  the  curtain  to  rise.  In  about  five 
minutes  the  noise  abated ;  and  when  the  lamps 
were  lighted  a  horrible  spectacle  met  my  view. 
The  ponies  were  all  out ;  but  three  of  the  riders 
were  horribly  mutilated  and  bleeding  upon  the 
iloor.  Two  Mexicans  (greasers)  were  also  rid- 
dled with  bullets  and  gasping  in  death,  while 
others  were  badly  wounded.  I  went  out  among 
the  cow-boys  and  found  that  some  of  them  were 
also  deeply  gashed  and  bleeding.  They  had  got 
the  worst  of  the  battle;  and  being  late  in  the 
night  they  concluded  to  disperse  and  come  in 
some  other  night  for  some  more  fun.  There  was 
not  a  boy  in  the  crowd  that  appeared  to  be  in 
the  least  affected  with  the  loss  of  his  comrades, 
and  with  wild  whoops  they  rushed  off  like  the 
wind.  Going  into  the  hall  I  found  the  band 
playing,  and  the  Mexicans  were  preparing  to 
•continue  the  ball.  The  five  bodies  were  drag- 
ged up  in  the  corner  and  a  blanket  thrown  over 
them,  and  in  the  blood  of  the  expired  men  the 
fandango  was  carried  on  till  the  morn  began  to 
dawn.  This  was  a  regular  dance-hall  scene,  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  221 

not  in  any  way  an  unusual  one.  I  attended  balls 
at  a  number  of  different  halls,  and  witnessed 
many  bloody  riots. 

Of  course,  these  halls  are  not  allowed  near 
towns  of   much  size  or  importance,  where  men 
live  with  their  famili'-s,  but  are  mostly  in  small 
places,  and  in  many  cases  are  far  out  upon  the 
range.     They  are  built  in  all  shapes.     The  very 
air  is  contaminated  with  the  vicious  venom  that 
arises  from  their  walls  like  the  odor  from  helL 
Some  are  built  by  digging  into  the  ground  a  few 
feet  and  then  putting  a  few  feet  of  adobes  on  top, 
making  the  ceiling  just  high  enough  for  a  man 
to  walk  under;  and  when  the  fiends  gather  in 
the  nights  are  made  hideous  and  the  noise  of 
the  riots  sounds  like  the  rumbling  of  the  infer- 
nal regions.     These  houses  are  the  manufacto- 
ries of   evil   and  the   polluted   fountains   from 
which  untold  misery  and  wickedness  have  been 
drunk  by  the   unfortunate   ones  who   traveled 
thither.     Many  a  noble  though  ambitious  young 
man,  the  pride  of  a  happy  family  and  the  de- 
light of  his  fellow-comrades,  has  gone  west  to 
seek  his  fortune,  like  his  forefathers  in  years 
gone  by.     The  location  is  often  made  in  these 
wild  places,  and  when  the  cultivated  delicacy 


222  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and  human  timidity  are  once  a  little  numbed,  he 
walks  with  his  comrades  and  is  soon  led  to  their 
venomous  dens.  Though  it  may  be  a  little 
shocking  at  first,  there  is  nothing  but  his  own 
lonely  conscience  to  discourage  him  and  warn 
him  of  the  enormity  and  danger ;  and  under  the 
circumstances  the  ordinary  man  is  tempted  and 
will  go  down.  When  he  visits  these  houses 
the  seeds  are  sown  in  his  breast  that  the  oxygen 
of  prairie  air  will  hasten  to  maturity. 

Every  man  who  visits  these  places  has  his  life 
in  his  hand;  and  it  is  as  easily  dropped  as 
though  it  were  the  most  insignificant  article. 
Often  when  a  fond  family  is  daily  looking  for  a 
loved  one  to  return,  his  spirit  is  winging  the 
subtile  air  and  his  bones  are  bleaching  upon  the 
prairie,  the  secret,  like  the  body,  melting  into 
clay.  Of  course,  as  was  said,  these  vile  places 
and  extremely  wicked  inhabitants  are  princi- 
pally found  in  small  towns  in  the  midst  of  the 
unsettled  country  or  where  these  earthly  hells  are 
pitched  in  the  midst  of  the  plain ;  for  there  are 
some  pretty  little  towns  and  good  people.  It  ap- 
pears somewhat  strange  that  man — and  not  only 
man — will  so  degenerate,  and  become  so  ex- 
tremely wicked  and  beastly ;  but  it  appears  that 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  223 

the  average  person,  when  living  in  a  wild,  un- 
settled country,  surrounded  with  so  much  evil, 
loses  all  his  refinement  and  develops  into  a  new 
creature. 

While  picturing  western  life  and  relating 
frontier  adventures  it  may  be  proper  and  perhaps^ 
interesting  to  many  to  give  a  sketch  of  the  life  of 
Hon.  Wm.  F.  Cody,— "Buffalo  Bill,"— a  man 
known  the  world  over  as  a  border  hero,  of  whom 
too  much  can  not  be  said  in  the  way  of  praise 
for  valuable  services  rendered  the  Government 
as  an  army-scout,  guide,  and  Indian-fighter. 

Born  in  Iowa  in  1843,  at  a  time  when  that 
state  was  a  border,  and  at  an  early  age  going 
with  his  father  to  Kansas,  in  the  midst  of  the 
troubles  there  that  "tried  men's  souls,"  "William 
F.  Cody  was  reared  amid  scenes  of  danger,  and 
met  with  many  thrilling  adventures  ere  he 
reached  his  thirteenth  year,  becoming  a  "boy 
hero  "  when  killing  his  first  Indian  before  he  en- 
tered his  teens. 

The  death  of  his  father,  from  the  result  of 
wounds  received  in  the  Kansas  war,  left  the  boy 
the  support  of  his  mother  and  sisters,  and,  pre- 
cocious for  his  years,  he  joined  an  emigrant- 
train  as  teamster,  and  rapidly  rose  from  that  po- 


221  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

sition  to  hunter  and  guide  over  the  overland 
trails  to  the  far  West. 

Of  his  numerous  adventures,  narrow  escapes, 
Indian  battles,  and  hardships  volumes  could  be 
written — for  he  made  his  name  famous  along 
the  border  from  Utah  to  Texas ;  and  though  a 
mere  boy  in  years,  few  men  were  his  superior  in 
strength  and  endurance,  while  the  cunning  of 
the  red-man  he  matched  with  equal  cunning, 
and,  in  fact,  won  the  name  of  being  able  to  "out- 
Injun,  Injun." 

Of  Mr.  Cody's  gaining  the  title  of  "Buffalo 
Bill"  several  stories  are  told,  one  of  which  is 
that  when  a  boy-hunter  to  one  of  Russell,  Major 
&  Waddell's  trains,  carrying  Government  sup- 
plies west  to  the  forts,  he  was  alone  on  the  prai- 
rie one  day,  hunting,  when  he  espied  a  tremen- 
dous herd  of  buffaloes  coming  toward  him  at 
full  speed.  The  train-encampment  was  miles 
away,  the  boy  was  on  foot,  and  there  was  but 
one  chance  to  escape  being  trampled  to  death, 
and  that  was  to  reach  a  lone  cotton-wood  tree 
some  distance  off.  A  fleet  runner,  he  gained  the 
tree  and  drew  himself  up  into  the  branches  just 
as  the  herd  of  thousands  of  buffaloes  came  tear- 
ing along  beneath  him.  Scarcely  had  he  men- 


THROUGH   THE  WEST.  225 

tally  congratulated  himself  upon  his  lucky  escape 
when  he  espied  behind  the  herd  half  a  hundred 
Sioux  warriors  in  full  pursuit;  and  he  knew 
that  they  would  make  short  work  of  him,  for 
they  would  also  pass  under  the  tree.  To  remain 
was  certain  death;  and  his  fertile  mind  saw  a 
chance, — one  in  a  thousand, — and  he  seized 
upon  it  at  once.  He  would  drop  down  on  the 
back  of  a  huge  butfalo-bull,  and  thus  ride  out  of 
danger.  This  he  did,  lauding  astride  of  the 
back  of  an  animal  that,  frightened  fearfully,  en- 
deavored to  throw  him  off,  but  in  vain.  Fortu- 
nately the  herd  headed  in  the  direction  of  the 
train-encampment,  and  as  the  men  ran  out  to 
secure  fresh  buffalo  meat  they  saw  that  one  of 
the  bulls  had  a  rider,  and  a  crack  shot  bringing 
the  animal  down,  it  was  found  to  be  Bill  Cody, 
who  was  then  and  there  christened  "Buffalo 
Bill." 

Another  account  is  that  when  hunting  for  the 
hands  on  the  Kansas  Pacific  liailroad  he,  in  one 
season,  killed  four  thousand  two  hundred  and 
eighty  buffaloes,  and  thereby  won  the  title  that 
he  is  known  by  the  world  over. 

As  a  pony-express  rider,  when  fifteen  years  of 
age,  under  the  famous  Alf.  Slade,  Buffalo  Bill 

15 


226  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

won  a  name  as  being  a  rider  of  marvelous  skill 
and  endurance,  making,  on  one  occasion,  a  con- 
tinuous ride  of  three  hundred  and  thirty-two 
miles,  and  accomplishing  the  whole  distance  iu 
twenty-two  hours, — truly  a  wonderful  feat. 

But  it  was  when  he  became  a  scout  in  the 
army  that  he  made  his  greatest  name;  and  the 
general  officers  under  whom  he  has  served,  and 
those  who  have  served  with  him,  give  him  the 
credit  of  being  a  man  of  unimpaired  skill  in 
prairie  craft,  indomitable  courage,  a  miraculous 
marksman  with  rifle  and  revolver,  and  at  all 
times  a  gentleman. 

Receiving  only  a  common-school  education, 
Buffalo  Bill  has  since  educated  himself;  for,  a 
thorough  reader  of  human  nature  and  close  ob- 
server of  men  and  things,  he  falls  naturally  into 
the  ways  of  polite  society,  while,  a  great  reader, 
he  has  a  fund  of  general  information  one  would 
not  believe  possible  to  be  attained  by  a  person 
who  had  led  his  arduous,  busy,  and  adventurous 
life. 

Over  six  feet  in  height,  formed  like  an  Apollo, 
and  as  handsome  as  a  picture,  he  is  a  man  to  at- 
tract universal  attention  wherever  he  goes,  to 
which,  however,  he  seems  utterly  indifferent. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  227 

At  the  time  of  the  visit  of  the  Grand  Duke 
Alexis  to  the  United  States,  General  Sheridan 
selected  Buffalo  Bill  as  his  guide,  and  he  received 
from  the  duke  a  magnificent  diamond  ring  in  re- 
turn for  his  services,  and  an  invitation  to  visit 
him  in  Russia,  which  Mr.  Cody  says  he  will  one 
day  accept. 

Acting  also  as  guide  and  hunter  for  numerous 
parties  of  English  noblemen  huntiug  on  the 
plains,  and  also  for  Mr.  James  Gordon  Bennett, 
J.  G.  Hecksher,  Leonard  and  Lawrence  Jerome, 
Colonel  Schuyler  Crosby,  and  other  noted  Ameri- 
cans, he  soon  became  known  as  a  bonafide  front- 
iersman. 

When  the  late  Mr.  Frank  Leslie  made  his 
memorable  trip  to  the  Pacific  coast,  Buffalo  Bill 
was  his  invited  guest  through  the  Sierra  Nevada 
Mountains. 

Thus  becoming  famous  through  his  own  deeds, 
Mr.  Cody  was  seized  upon  as  the  hero  of  many 
an  "o'er  true  tale"  in  the  weekly  papers,  and 
was  urged  to  come  to  the  East  and  engage  in  a 
dramatic  enterprise,  in  which  he  has  been  suc- 
cessful as  an  actor,  and  made  a  snug  fortune. 

As  a  pistol  and  rifle  shot  Mr.  Cody  has  no 
superior ;  and  his  deeds  with  fire-arms  are  simply 
miraculous,  and  must  be  seen  to  be  believed. 


228 


At  present  Mr.  Cody  resides  at  North  Platte, 
Nebraska,  where  he  has  a  large  cattle-ranch, 
which  yields  him  a  handsome  sum  annually,  and 
where  he  is  known  as  a  "cattle-king." 

The  cause  of  this  great  region  of  the  plains 
spreading  out  treeless  and  devoid  of  vegetation 
has  been  the  subject  of  extravagant  conjecture, 
and  some  queer  theories  have  been  advanced. 
Some  persons  think  that  it  was  once  covered 
with  trees  and  plants,  but  was  swept  over  by  fire, 
which  so  thoroughly  destroyed  all  seed  and 
roots  that  there  was  nothing  left  to  sprout; 
hence  the  broad,  clear  range.  All  persons  who 
have  been  upon  the  plains  will  scout  all  such 
theories,  for  nothing  will  grow  there  if  planted. 
The  physical  condition  of  this  great  track  is  but 
the  reasonable  effect  of  the  working  of  natural 
laws.  Rain  is  all  that  is  required  to  make  the 
desert  beam  and  blossom  like  the  beautiful  val- 
leys of  the  states,  though  of  course  it  would  take 
some  years  to  turn  the  dry  sands  into  soil.  No 
well-informed  person  wonders  why  Sahara  is  a 
desert;  and  though  the  region  of  the  plains  is 
visited  with  a  few  more  little  showers,  and  the 
surface  is  not  so  sandy,  yet  the  principle  is  the 
same.  What  falls  from  the  clouds  is  but  that 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  229 

which  arises  by  the  process  of  evaporation  from 
the  waters  below.  The  evaporation  from  our 
little  inland  waters  is  very  limited,  that  as  rain  it 
would  amount  to  very  few  and  feeble  showers. 
The  great  oceans,  seas,  and  gulfs  that  fringe  the 
continent  are  the  mighty  reservoirs  from  which 
rise  our  dews  and  refreshing  showers;  and  wher- 
ever their  moisture  is  not  carried,  the  effect  is 
invariably  that  of  which  the  great  deserts  of  the 
world,  and  the  mighty  plains  of  America,  bear 
testimony  to-day.  In  this  case,  the  distance  is 
so  great  from  the  waters  north  and  east  that 
all  the  moisture  is  lost  before  it  reaches  the 
prairie-land.  It  is  also  a  great  way  from  the 
gulf,  and  to  the  west  the  mountain  ranges  rear 
their  cold  summits  aloof  to  extract  the  damp- 
ness from  the  Pacific  breeze.  Hence,  so,  long  as 
the  broad,  open  waters  roll  in  their  present 
channels,  and  the  hills  and  valleys  remain,  the 
American  plains  will  divide  the  East  from  the 
West,  and  their  dry  surface  will  glitter  in  the 
bright,  burning  sun.  It  is,  nevertheless,  an  ex- 
cellent stock-range;  and  judging  from  the  mighty 
herds  annually  shipped  from  this  great  field,  it 
appears  a  necessary  pasture-land  for  the  world. 
It  appears  that  the  all-designing  Providence,  in 


230 


the  creation,  prepared  for  the  contingencies  of 
mankind,  and  adapted  this  region  to  its  present 
use,  as  well  as  the  mountain-sides  to  the  glitter- 
ing diamonds  and  rusty  ores. 

There  being  so  little  rain  here,  there  are  no 
stagnant  waters  to  poison  the  air;  and  the  at- 
mosphere being  so  dry,  substances  do  not  rot, 
but  simply  wither,  dry  up,  and  blow  away.  Car- 
casses will  sometimes  lie  for  several  years  before 
the  hide  is  broken.  There  are,  consequently,  no 
noxious  substances  to  impart  their  impurities, 
and  the  air  is  left  perfectly  wholesome.  The 
buzzard  and  blow-fly  have  no  putrefying  masses 
to  hover  over,  and  are  consequently  not  known 
here.  Fresh  meat  can  be  hung  up  in  the  open 
air,  without  salt,  and  it  will  dry  out  sweet  and 
beautiful ;  hence,  the  West  for  health.  For  pul- 
monary troubles,  this  pure,  dry  atmosphere  is 
the  balm  of  life;  and  there  are  numbers  of  healthy 
and  happy  persons  in  the  West  to-day,  rejoicing 
and  praising  the  western  angel  who  snatched 
them  from  the  brink  of  eastern  graves. 

But  to  go  back.  I  said  we  calculated  to  go 
into  business  in  the  valley  for  the  winter;  and  so 
we  did.  Charles  turned  cow-boy,  and  stayed  at 
the  home  ranch  during  the  winter;  Dave  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  231 

John  were  employed  at  the  round-house;  and, 
seeing  a  chance  to  make  money  yet  another  way, 
I  built  a  trading-house  upon  the  prairie  at  the 
end  of  the  railway-section  at  Granada,  where 
stand  a  few  little  houses.  I  stocked  with  blan- 
kets, rough  clothing,  hats,  boots,  flour,  corn,  to- 
bacco, cigars,  etc.  A  small  space  was  partitioned 
off  at  one  end  for  a  bar-room,  and  I  hired  a 
well-known  and  influential  cow-boy  to  attend  to 
this,  not  thinking  the  latter  an  honorable  part  of 
my  business,  to  Ohio  eyes,  but  aware  that  if  a 
person  wants  to  sell  in  any  country  he  must  keep 
what  the  people  want  to  buy;  for  otherwise  he  is 
not  patronized.  My  customers  were  cow-boys, 
Mexicans,  Indians,  emigrants,  and  the  few  set- 
tlers in  the  valley.  Of  course,  one  would  natu- 
rally expect  lively  times  once  in  awhile,-  under 
such  circumstances ;  but  I  could  smell  the  money 
in  the  air. 

Myself  and  my  hands  were  largely  acquainted 
with  the  boys;  and  they  came  in  from  all  direc- 
tions, saying  that  they  wanted  to  spend  their 
money  with  us.  The  bar-keeper  was  admired  by 
all  the  boys;  and  having  great  influence  over 
them,  he  seldom  had  much  trouble.  I  bought 
furs  from  the  Indians  and  hunters,  and  realized 


232  EOMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

large  profits.  Taking  strips  of  bright-colored 
calicoes,  I  tied  them  in  bunches;  and  the  Indian 
being  great  for  dashing  colors,  a  few  cents'  worth 
of  calico  bought  many  an  Indian  fur.  They  are 
also  slaves  to  tobacco  and  whisky ;  and  it  was  sel- 
dom they  took  money  away,  no  matter  how 
many  furs  they  brought  in.  They  never  wanted 
to  sell,  but  to  trade. 

The  boys  here  are  very  curious  about  luxuries 
and  oddities;  and  I  used  to  have  much  sport 
with  them.  One  time  I  sent  to  Kansas  City  for 
a  keg  of  pickled  pig's-feet;  and  when  there 
were  a  good  many  boys  in  I  opened  it.  After 
the  boys  found  that  they  were  good,  I  sold  half 
a  keg,  at  fifteen  cents  apiece,  before  I  stopped. 
It  was  amusing  to  see  them  running  round,  each 
with  a  pig's-foot  in  his  hand.  At  another  time 
I  bought  a  number  of  large  silk  neck-ties;  and 
after  selling  one,  I  sold  the  whole  lot  the  same 
day  for  one  dollar  and  seventy-five  cents  apiece. 
They  tied  them  round  their  necks,  and  used 
them  for  hat-bands.  Of  course  the  profits  were 
large  upon  all  sales,  and  I  made  money  fast. 
This  was  in  the  winter  of  1878-9, — the  time  of 
the  great  excitement  and  emigration  to  Lead- 
ville, — and  being  right  on  the  route,  from  fifty 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  233 

to  seventy -five  wagons  daily  passed  my  place  for 
a  couple  of  months.  The  weather  was  usually 
bad  and  the  traveling  hard ;  and  most  every  one 
of  the  outfits  needing  something  in  my  line,  my 
sales  ran  from  seventy-five  to  one  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars  per  day  for  several  weeks.  I  shall 
leave  the  reader  to  guess  at  the  margins,  and 
only  say  that  we  did  not  deal  in  nickels.  We 
were  all  now  located  at  the  same  place,  and  were 
making  money ;  and  many  a  fine  old  time  we 
had  together  in  that  old  Arkansas  valley. 

We  and  several  other  persons  kept  a  pack  of 
greyhounds,  and  we  often  went  out  for  a  chase. 
"When  wanting  a  chase,  each  boy  going  would 
saddle  a  good  pony,  and,  with  the  hounds 
trained  to  stay  close  in  the  rear,  we  would  ride 
out  over  the  plain,  looking  cautiously  for  a  flock 
of  antelopes,  deer,  a  jack-rabbit,  or  a  wolf. 
When  a  flock  of  antelopes  or  deer  is  seen,  the 
riders  take  advantage  of  the  hills  and  ravines 
and  get  just  as  close  as  possible  without  being 
discovered;  then,  turning  the  hounds  loose,  away 
they  go  with  the  speed  of  the  wind.  If  the 
hounds  are  well  bred,  and  can  be  gotten  within 
a  quarter  before  beginning  the  chase,  they  will 
usually  be  successful ;  otherwise  the  fleet  animals 
are  likely  to  escape. 


234 


The  antelope,  as  has  been  said,  is  a  very  vigi- 
lant and  spirited  animal;  and  as  they  bound 
away  in  the  chase  they  almost  baffle  the  eye. 
They  always  try  to  run  down  hill ;  and  as  they 
seldom  run  straight  very  far,  the  riders  can  cut 
across  and  keep  near  all  the  time,  and  often  run 
into  the  flock  without  going  half  as  far  as  the 
hounds.  A  flock  of  antelopes  flying  over  the 
plain,  with  a  pack  of  hounds  close  in  the  rear, 
and  followed  by  excited  horsemen  hallooing  and 
flying  their  hats,  is  truly  a  grand  sight  as  well  as 
an  agreeable  sport.  The  chase  is  sometimes 
short,  and  sometimes  ten  miles  long;  and  I  have 
rode  among  a  flock  when  they  were  trotting 
slowly  along,  with  mouths  wide  open,  and  the 
hounds  within  ten  steps  coming  slowly  along, 
with  their  great  red  tongues  lolling  out.  A 
well-bred  buck  antelope  is  a  little  more  than  the 
average  greyhound  can  overtake.  The  antelope 
is  swifter  than  the  deer.  Sometimes  a  large, 
well-developed  jack-rabbit  jumps  up;  and  when 
he  lays  his  long  ears  back  upon  his  neck  and 
gets  down  to  his  best  he  goes  like  the  news  upon 
a  telegraph-wire — only  touching  the  high  places 
— and  appears  like  a  row  of  jack-rabbits.  He 
can  outrun  the  antelope  for  a  short  distance,  but 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  235 

can  not  hold  out  so  long.  When  a  large  gray 
wolf  is  started  up  there  is  fun.  The  dogs  soon 
overtake  him;  but  to  kill  him  is  another  thing, 
I  have  seen  one  wolf  whip  six  hounds,  and  get 
away.  Hunters  do  not  like  to  have  their  hounds 
tackle  a  large  one,  for  he  cuts  them  up  so. 

The  cow-men  and  homesteaders  are  often 
visited  by  their  eastern  friends,  and  these  chases 
are  grand  sport  for  them.  I  recollect  that  one 
time  two  young  fellows  came  out  to  visit  their 
brother  in  his  little  adobe  in  the  valley;  and 
learning  of  the  sport,  they  were  overanxious  for 
a  chase.  They  asked  us  to  take  them  out;  and 
finding  that  they  were  plug- hatted,  nickel-plated 
fellows,  with  lots  of  conceit,  we  concluded  to 
have  some  fun.  They  bragged  of  their  riding 
ability,  and  being  thus  relieved  of  the  responsi- 
bility of  breaking  a  couple  of  tender-foot  necks, 
we  brought  up  two  spirited  ponies  used  to  the 
chase, — and  one  a  professional  bucker  when  he 
took  a  notion, — and  he  would  often  take  a  notion 
in  the  heat  of  the  chase.  The  silk-hats,  broad- 
cloth, and  kid-gloves  glistened  in  the  sunlight, 
and  their  heads  stuck  up  through  the  glazed 
standing-collars;  and  as  we  pranced  out  upon 
the  range  I  could  hardly  conceal  my  laughter 


236  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

when  I  thought  of  the  fun  to  come.  All  at  once 
a  powerful  jack-rabbit  jumped  from  a  bunch  of 
grass  and  sped  away  like  the  wind.  The  hounds 
flashed  by  and  were  gone,  and  the  ponies  needed 
no  urging.  In  a  few  hundred  yards  the  man  on 
the  bucker  touched  his  pony  too  far  back  with 
his  foot;  and  Jerusalem!  to  see  that  pony  buck 
"was  a  caution.  The  first  jump  the  old  plug-hat 
rolled  off  over  the  sand  like  a  cannon-ball  upon 
Lookout  Mountain,  the  collar  flew  open,  and  the 
breeches  burst;  the  next  he  was  popping  a 
foot  above  the  saddle  with  his  coat-tail  playing 
in  the  air  like  the  national  flag;  and  the  next  he 
was  picking  himself  out  of  the  sand,  limping 
around  on  one  leg,  pulling  up  his  breeches,  wip- 
ing the  blood  from  his  nose,  and  speaking  the 
•Colorado  dialect  as  nearly  as  possible,  while  the 
pony  ran  off'  in  the  chase.  The  other  kiddy, 
Ending  that  he  could  not  hold  his  pony,  had  let 
go  the  rein  and  was  holding  to  the  saddle- 
horn  with  his  legs  spread  out  like  the  holy  cross, 
:and  his  horse  just  flying.  He  ran  among  the 
hounds;  and  the  rabbit  turning  short,  the  pony 
gave  one  stiff'  jump,  whirled  upon  his  hind  feet, 
and  ran  on.  The  plug-hat  flew,  the  rider  scoot- 
ed forward,  tearing  open  his  vest  and  pants  upon 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  237 

the  saddle-horn,  and  holding  around  the  horse's- 
neck  with  a  death-grip.  The  next  turn  the 
second  kid-glove  went  scooting  his  nose  in  the 
sand  and  his  heels  in  the  air.  We  saw  that  they 
were  not  killed,  and  ran  on.  After  we  had  the 
rabbit  we  took  a  hearty  laugh,  and  then  caught 
the  ponies  and  went  hack  for  the  good  riders, 
who  had  stopped  to  rest.  The  classic  language 
had  flown,  and  they  were  together  brushing  off 
their  plugs  and  knocking  the  sand  from  their 
ears,  and  talking  in  such  language  that  any 
Colorado  boy  could  understand  every  word  they 
said.  Well,  there  was  no  fan  in  the  chase  for 
them,  so  we  went  back  and  the  boys  uset  'em 
up."  The  stiffening  was  from  their  collars,  and 
the  conceit  from  their  minds;  and  I'll  bet  if  an 
eastern  man  tells  them  that  he  can  ride  any  Colo- 
rado pony,  they  will  say  to  themselves,  "He's  a 
liar."  The  ways  of  the  people  and  even  the  horses 
of  Colorado  have  to  be  learned;  and  to  a  fresh 
eastern  man  it  is  a  big  lesson. 

A  man  and  wife  by  the  name  of  Mills,  passing 
here  en  route  for  Leadville,  being  a  little  short  in 
finance,  and  finding  that  employment  could  be 
had  at  the  round-house,  concluded  to  put  up  in  a 
little  board  shanty  that  stood  near  my  place,  and 


238  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

work  a  few  days.     That  very  night  several  cow- 
boys came  in,  and,  as  usual,  did  considerable  yel- 
ling and  shooting.     In  the  morning,  finding  six 
bullet-holes  through  his  house,  he   related  his 
night's  adventure,  and  told  how  he  and  his  wife 
had  propped  the  doors  and  then  lay  behind  the 
stove,  and  said  he  would  not  stay  in  that  house 
and  run  his  chances  for  the  whole  d n  round- 
house.    So,  taking  his  outfit,  he  moved  across 
the  railroad  a  half  mile   down   the   river,  and 
there  put  up  a  tent  for  his  house.     That  after- 
noon a  few  cow-boys  came  in,  and  the  sheriff 
and  two  deputies  from  Las  Animas  happening  to 
be  there,  a  trouble  arose  and  the  boys  rode  out 
and  charged  upon  the  house.    Firing  commenced, 
and  the  sheriff,  with  a  large  needle-gun,   shot 
dead  one  of  the  ponies,  leaving  its  rider  dis- 
mounted.    He  ran  right  down  the  railroad  to- 
ward the  tent;  and  in  firing  after  him    a  bullet 
went  through  the  tent,  and  several  others  buzzed 
by.     This  was  too  much  for  the  man  in  the  tent, 
and  he  started  back  East  that  very  night  by  the 
light  of  the  moon.     He  said  if  a  man  could  not 
even  live  in  a  tent  out  on  the  prairie  without  be- 
ing shot  at  every  day  and  night,  he  had  enough 
of  the  West. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  239 

Well,  things  went  on,  and  toward  spring  my 
brother  came  out  from  Ohio  for  his  health. 
When  the  fur-season  was  going  out,  and  the 
Leadville  travelers  began  to  drop  oft,  I  sold  out 
and  began  to  prepare  for  a  trip  into  the  mount- 
ains. My  brother  enjoyed  the  light,  pure  air 
and  western  novelties,  and  decided  to  go  along. 
Another  young  man  named  William  Gray,  from 
Sutton,  Nebraska,  also  decided  to  go.  My  old 
camp-outfit  was  trimmed  up,  and  everything  was 
prepared  to  make  the  trip  a  pleasant  as  well  as 
an  instructive  one.  Friend  Charles  had  been 
called  home  to  Ohio  by  the  illness  of  his  father, 
and  Dave  and  John  decided  to  stay  in  Colorado, 
and  not  go  any  farther  west.  It  was  quite  shock- 
ing to  me  to  think  of  going  on  and  leaving  be- 
hind my  old  comrades,  with  whom  I  had  travel- 
ed so  many  days,  and  eaten  so  many  meal's  in 
our  little  camp  up  and  down  through  the  broad, 
wild  West;  and  especially  John,  who  started 
with  me  from  Ohio,  and  sat  with  me  upon  the 
lonely  plains  in  the  bleak  winds  of  winter,  and 
sultry  breath  of  summer ;  whose  tongue  parched 
with  mine  upon  the  desert,  and  who  fought  the 
same  hungry  pangs — one  who  had  proved  him- 
self a  noble  and  gallant  companion,  and  brave  in 


240  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

the  hour  of  trial.  But  it  must  be  done;  and  after 
giving  each  other  our  best  advice,  we  took  a 
long  good  bye — perhaps  forever. 

That  parting  I  shall  not  forget, 
Though  I  live  to  be  aged  and  gray ; 

For  comrade  ties  did  scarcely  let 
Me  tear  from  them  away. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  241 


FA.RT     II. 

CHAPTER     I. 

We  Start  for  the  Mountains— Las  Animas— Pueblo— Colorado 
Springs— Manitou— Mineral  Springs— We  Ascend  Pike's 
Peak— Balancing  Rock— Garden  of  the  Gods— Devil's  Hole 
— Return  to  Manitou. 

At  two  o'clock  P.  M.  of  Jane  5th,  1879,  every- 
thing being  in  readiness,  our  little  party  of  three 
bid  farewell  to  our  Granada  friends  and  the 
pleasant  old  tramping-ground  and  steered  our 
course  westward,  expecting  to  traverse  the  beau- 
tiful snow-capped  mountains  and  to  gratify  our 
long-cherished  desires.  There  could  not  have 
been  a  more  jolly  outfit  than  ours  as  we  wound 
up  the  pretty  green  valley  of  the  Arkansas,  wav- 
ing our  hats  and  flirting  farewell  to  our  acquaint- 
ances who  stood  in  the  narrow  doors  of  their  little 
adobe  homes.  To  me  it  appeared  like  leaving 
home ;  and,  though  cheered  by  pleasant  antici- 
pations, I  have  no  doubt  that  there  was  more 
solemnity  in  the  occasion  for  me  than  for  the 

16 


242  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

rest  of  the  party,  who  rejoiced  while  thinking 
of  the  scenery  that  yet  lay  before  us. 

We  were  now  traveling  upon  what  is  known 
in  Fremont's  travels  as  the  "Great  American 
Desert; "  yet  the  description  given  of  this  coun- 
try by  General  Fremont  nearly  half  a  century 
ago  fails  to  compare  with  the  reality  of  to-day. 
Though  I  shall  not  stop  here  to  question  the 
credibility  of  our  able  explorer,  yet  permit  me 
to  say,  by  way  of  explanation,  that  great  phys- 
ical changes  often  take  place,  and  more  espe- 
cially in  new  countries;  and  notwithstanding 
Mr.  Fremont's  description  of  this  part  of  Colo- 
rado is  not  correct  as  of  the  present,  it  may  have 
been  nearer  so  when  he,  with  his  daring  follow- 
ers, faced  the  dangers  of  the  savage  land  and 
matched  strength  with  the  red  warrior.  As 
said  before,  this  is  now  the  home  of  the  stock- 
raiser;  and  thousands  of  cattle  may  be  constantly 
seen  grazing  on  this  so-called  American  desert. 
Here  they  remain  during  the  twelve  months  of 
the  year,  without  shelter  or  any  unnatural  pro- 
tection, and  are  compelled  to  "root,  hog,  or 
die."  If  the  winter  is  severe,  many  of  them 
fall  victims  to  the  freezing  blasts.  But  this 
being  in  the  month  of  June,  the  cattle  were  in 


THROUGH  THE    WEST.  243 

fine  condition ;  and  while  passing  along  our  at- 
tention was  often  attracted  by  their  fine  appear- 
ance, which  drew  forth  many  suggestions  and 
some  interesting  remarks  concerning  the  subject 
of  stock-raising,  of  which  the  following  is  an 
example :  "  See  that  fine  cow  yonder ;  and  look 
what  a  fine  calf  she  has.  That  cow  and  calf 
would  be  worth  seventy-five  dollars  in  Dayton, 
Ohio.  What  do  you  think,  Will?"  "Well," 
said  Will,  who  was  always  jealous  over  his  na- 
tive state,  "we  have  lots  of  finer  cows  than  that 
in  Nebraska;  and  there  are  calves  where  I  came 
from  that  are  but  six  weeks  old  which  beat  those 
all  to  pieces." 

Thus  passed  away  the  first  day  of  our  journey  ; 
and  when  the  faint  beams  of  the  sinking  sun 
were  playing  upon  the  tops  of  the  river  cotton- 
woods  we  halted  for  the  night  on  the  green 
banks  of  the  Arkansas.  After  watering  the 
horses  and  picketing  them  in  the  most  favorable 
spot  for  grazing,  the  new  party  took  its  first 
supper  in  its  own  camp. 

Our  facilities  for  cooking  were  somewhat  lim- 
ited to  those  inexperienced  in  camp-life ;  so,  of 
course,  the  duty  of  getting  supper  devolved  on 
me.  Though  the  boys  felt  a  little  adverse  to  a 


244  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

rough  hunter's  hands  going  into  the  dough,  the 
little  cloud  was  soon  lifted  from  their  delicacies 
by  the  sight  of  an  ovenful  of  large,  light, 
brown-topped  biscuits,  which  Will  said  looked 
as  though  a  Nebraska  baker  had  made  them. 
Our  fare,  in  addition  to  this,  consisted  of  roast 
potatoes  with  the  hides  on, — as  cow-boys  say, — 
meat,  and  sirup.  The  boys  ate  with  a  relish; 
and  after  washing  the  dishes, — consisting  of  a 
tin-pan  and  a  knife  apiece, — and  considerable 
boasting  as  to  who  had  eaten  the  most  supper, 
and  remarks  as  to  how  well  it  tasted,  the  blan- 
kets were  stretched  beneath  the  green-spreading 
foliage  of  a  little  cotton-wood  tree,  and  the  little 
party,  with  but  a  single  blanket  between  them 
and  the  earth  and  a  similar  covering,  lay  down  to 
dream  of  the  peculiarities  of  western  life.  There 
we  lay,  gazing  at  the  bright,  twinkling  stars  and 
listening  to  the  music  of  the  purple  waters  of 
the  Arkansas  as  they  rolled  over  a  rocky  riffle 
just  above,  until  slumber  closed  our  eyes  and 
shut  our  thoughts  from  the  fields  of  nature. 

We  awoke  at  the  first  note  of  the  curious 
little  songster  among  the  branches  above  us; 
and  after  the  boys  had  related  their  dreams,  we 
all  went  down  to  the  river.  The  boys  said  it 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  245 

was  the  first  time  they  had  ever  used  an  Arkan- 
sas wash-basin.  Biscuits  were  then  made 
without  any  objection  on  the  part  of  the  boys. 
Breakfast  being  ready,  we  all  eat  heartily;  and  it 
was  not  long  before  we  were  ready  to  roll  up 
the  valley  to  the  west. 

But,  lo !  one  of  our  horses,  which  had  already 
become  tired  of  the  trip,  refused  to  go  with  us 
any  farther;  and  this  caused  the  necessity  of 
drafting  a  few  resolutions,  among  which  was  the 
following:  "Resolved,  That  no  Colorado  pony 
can  stop  three  boys  bound  for  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains." This  resolution  was  at  length  unani- 
mously adopted  by  us ;  and  the  pony  being  in 
the  minority,  the  force  of  the  resolution  was 
brought  to  bear  upon  the  only  adverse  party  in 
the  shape  of  a  cotton-wood  sapling ;  and  after  a 
short  debate  we  once  more  pushed  forward. 

We  had  not  gone  far,  however,  before  we 
came  to  a  prairie-dog  town ;  and  the  little  ani- 
mals, seeing  us  trespassing  within  their  corpo- 
rate limits,  set  up  such  a  howling  as  to  attract 
our  attention.  The  little  animals  would  run 
from  one  burrow  to  another,  stand  erect  upon 
their  hind  feet,  shake  themselves,  and  dart  into 
a  hole  in  the  earth,  only  to  return  and  repeat  the 


246 


same  performance.  We  had  just  bought  several 
new  six-shooters,  and  Doc. — a  name  given  to  my 
brother — thought  that  here  would  be  a  fine  place 
to  try  them.  I  advised  the  boys  that  I  thought 
they  could  not  be  hit,  as  I  had  often  seen  it  tried, 
and  never  saw  one  killed ;  and  after  several  fruit- 
less attempts  Doc.  concluded  they  were  too  quick 
for  powder.  Turning  to  Will, — who  sat  upon 
the  wagon  during  the  skirmish,  like  a  Roman 
senator  at  an  amphitheater, — and  resolved  to 
save  his  credit^  as  a  marksman,  he  said:  "Well, 
Will,  what  do  you  think  about  this?"  "Oh," 
said  he,  "  I  have  shot  lots  of  them  in  Nebraska." 

As  noon  was  nearing  and  the  sun  shining  with 
unveiled  splendor  upon  the  sandy  plain,  the  heat 
was  intense ;  and  seeing  a  small  adobe  house  in 
the  distance  we  at  once  determined  to  go  there, 
that  we  might  procure  some  cool,  fresh  water, 
and  stop  for  dinner. 

The  road  was  smooth  and  the  team  fresh,  and 
we  glided  merrily  along  and  came  to  the  little 
town  of  Las  Animas  just  as  the  sun  was  tinging 
with  gold  the  western  horizon.  There  is  a  gov- 
ernment fort  here  called  Fort  Lyon ;  and  after 
conversing  awhile  with  the  soldiers  we  entered 
the  town  and  at  once  proceeded  to  the  post- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  247 

office,  expecting  letters  from  our  homes  and  east- 
ern friends.  But  unfortunately  the  mail  had  not 
yet  arrived,  and  we  were  compelled  to  stay 
the  next  day  for  the  expected  news.  As  this 
little  town,  consisting  of  about  five  hundred  in- 
habitants, proved  to  be  quite  a  lively  place,  we 
had  no  trouble  in  passing  away  the  time.  Dur- 
ing the  day  we  conversed  with  various  citizens ; 
and  the  boys  were  anxious  to  hear  everything 
that  could  be  learned  about  the  country  and  in- 
habitants. These  conversations  proved  to  be 
very  interesting  and  instructive.  We  were  told 
that  we  were  in  Bent  County,  and  that  forty 
years  ago  Mr.  Bent  lived  here  alone  among  the 
little  trees  upon  the  river-bank,  surrounded  by 
wild  beasts  and  savages.  They  told  us  of  some 
of  his  daring  exploits  with  the  Indians,  and 
pointed  to  the  place  where  once  stood  his  lonely 
hut,  which  is  now  mingled  with  the  dust  at  the 
side  of  his  grave.  As  he  was  the  first  white 
man  there  the  county  took  his  name. 

The  latter  days  of  Kit  Carson  were  spent  here; 
and  his  remains  are  buried  near  the  river-bank, 
about  five  miles  east  of  Las  Animas.  We  went 
to  see  the  spot,  and  stood  at  the  grave  of  him 
who  was  perhaps  more  than  a  peer — in  boldness 


248 


and  endurance — of  any  other  who  ever  reaped 
his  livelihood  in  a  wild,  savage  land.  His  little 
hut  has  almost  returned  to  dust,  and  a  little 
mound  of  debris  among  the  trees  tells  where  the 
daring  hunter  lived.  His  grave  is  near  by,  and 
naught  but  a  rude,  rough  rock  marks  the  spot 
where  the  gallant  hero  lies. 

Here  lives  John  Prowers,  one  of  the  wealthiest 
stock-men  in  the  state.  Upon  inquiry  as  to  his 
great  financial  success,  we  were  informed  that  he 
came  to  Colorado  a  poor  man;  that  he  married 
the  daughter  of  an  Indian  chief;  that  at  the  birth 
of  his  first  issue  he  received  a  donation  of  five 
thousand  dollars  from  his  father-in-law,  and 
continues  to  receive  this  singular  gift  whenever 
a  new  member  is  added  to  his  family.  Mr. 
Prowers  has  at  present  thirteen  children.  He 
says  he  believes  in  large  families  and  generous 
fathers-in-law.  I  might  here  remark  that  two 
of  his  children  are  at  present  attending  college ; 
and  it  is  said  that  they  are  apt  scholars,  and 
intelligent  and  promising  young  ladies,  not- 
withstanding their  Indian  mother  (who  is  so 
wretchedly  stupid  and  homely  that  nothing  but 
the  most  glittering  prospects  for  a  large  family 
at  five  thousand  dollars  apiece  could  induce  a 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  249 

man  with  the  least  taste  to  love).  It  is  said  that 
when  she  and  Mr.  Prowers  were  first  married, 
she  used  to  leave  his  home  and  be  gone  among 
the  wild  Indians  for  some  weeks  at  a  time  before 
returning. 

Well,  the  day  was  an  interesting  one  for  us, 
and  as  the  darkness  gathered  we  sought  our 
camp  and  retired  for  the  night. 

The  next  day  the  mail  arrived  and  brought 
the  expected  news.  We  at  once  read  our  letters ; 
and  after  some  comment  as  to  what  our  eastern 
friends  would  think  could  they  see  us  in  camp, 
and  what  they  would  do  under  like  circumstan- 
ces, etc.,  etc.,  we  left  Las  Animas  to  take  care  of 
itself,  and  resumed  our  journey.  Nothing  de- 
serving of  comment  occurred  during  the  day. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  our  team  had  a  good  rest, 
and  we  glided  along  over  the  plain  at  a  good 
;speed,  occupying  the  time  by  singing  songs  and 
telling  stories. 

The  next  day  three  antelopes  appeared  at  the 
distance  of  half  a  mile,  and  we  aimed  our  big 
rifles  at  them.  The  distance  was  so  great,  how- 
•ever,  that  it  could  not  be  judged  by  the  eye;  and 
before  we  could  get  the  range  by  experiment 
{watching  where  the  balls  struck  in  the  sand), 


250  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

the  animals  dashed  away.  Will  did  not  try  his 
skill,  but  said  that  he  had  killed  antelopes  at 
more  than  a  mile  distant  in  Nebraska. 

We  were  now  in  sight  of  the  long  looked-for 
mountains;  and  although  yet  nearly  one  hun- 
dred miles  distant,  their  beautiful  snow-caps 
shone  plainly  in  the  bright  sunlight.  As  this 
was  in  the  heat  of  June,  and  the  scorching  sun 
was  beating  heavily  upon  us,  we  felt  delighted 
to  see  snow,  and  imagined  how  cool  and  splendid 
it  would  be  to  sit  upon  the  mountain-top,  and 
what  fun  it  would  be  to  snow-ball  in  the  month 
of  June. 

A  few  days  later  and  we  came  into  the  city  of 
Pueblo.  This  is  a  place  of  about  three  thousand 
inhabitants,  and  situated  at  the  western  termi- 
nus of  the  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  Eailway. 
"We  found  out  that  there  was  to  be  a  good  theater 
at  the  hall  that  night ;  so  we  made  haste  to  get 
supper,  after  which  we  changed  our  suits  and  at 
once  repaired  to  the  scene  of  action.  The  play 
was  "  Ten  Nights  in  a  Bar  Room."  I  tell  you  it 
was  a  real  play,  too, — there  was  no  fiction  about 
it, — for  the  hall  was  a  perfect  bar  room;  and  I 
am  sure  the  actors  had  been  there  at  least  ten 
nights,  and  not  long  absent  in  the  day-time. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  251 

Well,  I  had  seen  so  much  of  this  that  it  was  to 
me  an  old  thing ;  but  to  the  boys  it  was  rather 
exciting.  This  place  is  situated  among  the  hills 
and  low  mountains ;  and  while  it  is  not  large, 
and  does  not  promise  to  be  so,  it  is  very  enter- 
prising, and  everything  is  lively.  And  there  are 
some  very  good  citizens  living  here.  Of  course 
everything  is  high ;  though  a  very  good  meal 
can  be  had  for  fifty  cents.  It  is  a  wholesale 
place  for  many  mining-camps  and  stock-firms, 
as  well  as  a  supply-camp  for  the  many  emigrants 
who  are  constantly  going  into  the  mountains. 
In  the  winter  season,  when  the  mines  are  block- 
ed with  snow,  many  of  the  miners  come  down 
here  tox  board  until  the  season  comes  round 
again.  They  usually  have  considerable  money; 
and  though  a  great  deal  of  it  is  gambled  away, 
the  hotel  irien  do  very  well, — for  they  are  the 
gamblers, — and  there  are  several  fine  houses 
here. 

To  stand  upon  a  high  bluff  north  of  town  just 
before  sunrise  on  a  clear,  bright  morning  in  the 
summer-season,  when  the  breath  of  the  town  is 
warm,  and  look  out  in  the  distance  upon  Pike's 
Peak,  which  rears  its  snow- summit  among 
the  little  cumuli,  looking  like  the  crowned 


252 


king  of  the  greenhorns  with  his  white  mantle 
upon  him,  and  see  the  long  range  extending  far 
to  the  north  and  south  upon  either  side,  with  a 
trail  of  snow  upon  its  crest,  the  beauty  of  mount- 
ain scenery  appears  in  all  its  perfection.  When 
the  wind  comes  from  that  direction,  the  breeze 
brings  with  it  the  mountain  breath  ;  and  oh,  how 
lovely !  Persons  taking  their  first  view  of  the 
mountains  from  this  place  are,  without  exception, 
greatly  struck  with  the  grandeur,  and  are  anxious 
to  rove  among  the  snow-limbed  pines.  We  were 
not  exceptions,  either;  and  after  supplying  our- 
selves with  the  necessaries,  we  pushed  off  toward 
the  beautiful  and  attractive  scenery.  We  were 
told  before  leaving  Pueblo  that  the  distance  to 
the  peak  was  sixty-five  miles ;  but  before  we  had 
completed  our  first  day's  journey  we  concluded 
that  we  were  misinformed.  The  distance  ap- 
peared very  short ;  and  we  fully  expected  that  at 
an  early  hour  the  next  day  we  could  be  ascend- 
ing the  mountain-side.  The  next  morning  we 
arose  early,  and  casting  our  eyes  westward  we 
beheld  the  towering,  silver-tipped  mount  in  such 
grandeur  as  to  far  surpass  our  first  view ;  and  we 
saw  the  power  and  beauty  of  nature  in  a  single 
scene.  We  then  for  the  first  time  fully  realized 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  253 

that  to  view  mountain  scenery  in  its  super- 
lative aspect,  it  must  be  done  from  the  east- 
ern side,  and  just  before  sunrise.  "We  all 
began  to  estimate  as  to  how  far  we  had  to 
traVel  before  reaching  the  object  of  our  attrac- 
tion. I — though  used  to  the  prairie — thought 
the  distance  about  five  miles,  Will  about  ten, 
while  Doc.  offered  to  bet  any  amount  that  it 
was  not  over  three  miles,  and  that  he  could 
walk  over  there  in  an  hour.  Soon  after  we 
journeyed  on,  each  feeling  confident  that  a 
few  hours'  travel  would  prove  his  judgment  as 
to  distance.  Presently,  however,  a  man  came 
riding  by ;  and  each  of  us  being  eager  to  know 
who  had  guessed  the  nearest  to  the  distance,  I 
inquired  of  the  rider,  whom  we  expected  would 
know  the  distance  to  a  certainty.  To  our  -great 
disappointment  and  surprise,  he  responded,  "Just 
forty-five  miles."  Certainly  this  appeared  very 
unreasonable;  for  nothing  was  plainer  than  that 
the  peak  was  just  by  our  very  side;  and  we  could 
plainly  see  the  little  pines  and  cedars  upon  its 
side.  We  were  asked  to  not  believe  our  own 
eyes.  We  found,  however,  that  we  were  rightly 
informed.  Such  is  the  deception  which  the  in- 
experienced are  often  bound  to  meet  in  this 


254  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

strange  country.  This  deception  arises  partly 
from  the  immensity  of  the  object,  but  more  espe- 
cially from  the  atmosphere,  which  in  this  country 
is  very  dry  and  clear ;  for  the  less  dense  the  at- 
mosphere, the  greater  the  distance  of  vision. 

The  next  day  we  came  into  the  beautiful  little 
town  of  Colorado  Springs.  The  reader  would 
naturally  infer  that  from  the  name  given  to  the 
place  we  were  now  really  at  the  springs  so 
often  mentioned  by  the  tourist ;  but  really  they 
are  situated  five  miles  west  of  here,  and  I  shall 
have  occasion  to  speak  of  them  hereafter. 

It  was  now  the  Sabbath-day,  and  we  concluded 
to  remain  here  until  the  morrow.  After  select- 
ing a  suitable  spot  upon  which  to  camp,  we 
changed  our  suits  and  were  soon  wending  our 
way  through  the  streets  toward  the  little  Pres- 
byterian church.  Here,  although  entire  stran- 
gers, we  were  at  once  directed  to  the  most  com- 
fortable seats,  and  were  regarded  with  so  much 
respect  by  the  citizens  that  we  again  made  a 
similar  visit  in  the  evening. 

We  were  now  within  five  miles  of  the  base  of 
the  mountain  already  referred  to ;  and  as  morn- 
ing came  and  twilight  dawned  upon  our  little 
camp,  all  were  busy  preparing  to  complete  the 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  255 

distance  to  the  object  which  stood  so  majestic- 
ally towering  before  us,  with  our  minds  fully 
absorbed  with  thoughts  of  climbing  its  rocky 
sides  and  standing  upon  its  cool,  snowy  summit. 

Before  leaving  here  I  desire  to  say  a  few 
words  by  way  of  description  of  this  pretty  little 
place.  The  town — the  population  of  which  is 
about  six  thousand  souls — is  situated  on  the 
Denver  &  Rio  Grande  Railway.  It  is  neatly 
laid  oft' "in  perfect  squares,  the  streets  all  being 
of  the  same  width.  Along  either  side  of  each 
street  are  rows  of  beautiful,  thrifty  trees,  which 
almost  meet  their  heads  over  the  passway,  ren- 
dering them  cool  and  delightful;  while  the 
water  rolls  in  cool,  crystal  streamlets  at  either 
side  of  every  street.  The  buildings  are  all  re- 
markably neat ;  and  there  are  two  or  three  very 
large  and  magnificent  hotels,  with  all  modern 
improvements  and  conveniences.  Take  it  all  in 
all,  Colorado  Springs  is  certainly  the  most  beau- 
tiful place  we  had  ever  seen.  But  as  I  do  not 
wish  to  weary  the  reader  with  long  and  tedious 
descriptions,  I  must  hasten  to  future  events. 

When  we  arrived  within  half  a  mile  of  the 
famous  springs  we  camped  among  the  bushes  on 
the  bank  of  a  little  stream  that  flowed  down 


256 


from  among  the  mountains,  in  order  that  our 
team  might  have  water  and  good  pasture.  We 
then  proceeded  the  rest  of  the  way  on  foot. 

Our  attention  was  attracted  hy  the  many  ve- 
hicles passing  to  and  fro, — some  very  fine  car- 
riages drawn  by  beautiful  matched  teams.  On 
closer  observation  we  found  that  the  passengers 
were  usually  lying  in  beds  prepared  for  the  pur- 
pose, and  apparently  sleeping.  On  inquiry,  we 
learned  that  these  were  invalids;  and  as  they 
were  unable  to  occupy  any  other  posture,  on  ac- 
count of  physical  weakness,  they  were  taking 
their  exercise  in  that  way.  Here  might  be  seen 
numbers  of  such  invalids  from  all  parts  of  the 
Union.  They  are  usually  affected  with  pulmonary 
disease,  and  consequently  come  here  to  breathe 
the  pure  mountain-air  and  to  drink  of  nature's 
healing  fountains. 

The  springs  are  situated  in  a  deep  hollow  near 
the  base  of  the  peak ;  and  three  splendid  hotels, 
with  a  few  dwellings,  a  livery-stable,  a  grocery, 
etc.,  constitute  the  town  of  Manitou,  the  asylum 
of  the  afflicted,  with  whom  the  large  hotels  are 
often  crowded. 

Well,  we  first  came  to  the  sulphur  spring ;  but 
after  tasting  its  water — which  proved  to  be  not 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  257 

very  palatable — we  proceeded  to  the  next, 
which  we  found  to  be  soda-water.  There  is  a 
beautiful  polished  rock,  about  six  feet  square 
and  quite  thick,  carved  out  like  a  basin  and 
placed  over  this  spring,  to  receive  the  clear,  cool 
waters  that  constantly  bubble  up  through  the 
silver-sand.  We  had  yet  one  spring  to  visit, 
and  this  was  the  iron-spring;  so,  after  seeing  it 
and  tasting  of  its  waters,  I  told  the  boys  that  I 
had  now  tasted  all  of  them,  and  that  I  preferred 
water  without  mineral.  Will  suggested  that  it 
might  be  like  beer — it  does  not  taste  so  well  at 
first,  but  it  does  not  take  long  to  get  used  to  it. 
Doc.  thought  that  the  greatest  objection  wasx,  the 
springs  were  half  a  mile  from  camp,  and  a  mile 
would  be  a  long  way  to  go  every  time  a  fellow 
wanted  a  drink.  So  he  accordingly  procured  a 
little  brown  jug;  and  after  it  was  filled  we 
started  back  for  camp.  We  had  not  gone  far 
when  of  a  sudden  the  cork  flew  forcibly  from 
the  jug;  and  striking  Will  on  the  most  promi- 
nent feature  of  his  face,  it  brought  forth  a  few 
strains  of  Colorado  eloquence.  Here  Will  set 
the  jug  down  and  positively  refused  to  carry  it 
farther;  "for,"  said  he,  "if  the  rest  of  you  want 
to  run  the  risk  of  drinking  that  water,  all  right. 

17 


258  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

But  I  don't  calculate  to  take  any  chances ;  for 
who  knows  but  what  the  blamed  stuff  might 
blow  a  fellow  up?" 

We  spent  some  days  wandering  up  and  down 
the  lovely  passes  and  sitting  beneath  the  little 
trees  on  the  brinks  of  the  clear  springs  from 
whose  waters  we  daily  drew.  To  attempt  to  de- 
scribe this  place  as  it  really  is  would  be  under- 
taking an  impossibility ;  for  the  beautiful  green 
slopes  of  the  surrounding  mountains,  upon 
which  the  tasteful  hand  of  Providence  has 
planted  her  most  lovely  pines,  the  great  silver- 
topped  monument  to  the  west  that  rears  its 
head  far  above  the  clouds  as  if  to  call  down  the 
blessing  of  Heaven  upon  the  pools  below  and 
guiding  the  afflicted  to  the  fountain  of  life,  the 
little  springs  away  up  in  the  bluffs  that  send 
their  clear,  icy  waters  rippling  down  the  mount- 
ain-sides among  the  pretty  trees,  are  all  too 
perfect  and  beautiful  for  the  human  hand  to  imi- 
tate or  the  mind  to  imagine. 

The  medicinal  qualities  of  the  springs,  too,  are 
very  great ;  for  many  persons  who  reached  their 
green  brinks  exhausted,  emaciated,  and  pale  as 
death  have  felt  new  strength  at  the  first  draught, 
and  in  a  few  weeks  the  thin  form,  with  the  slow, 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  259 

faint  pulse,  is  as  a  new  person,  and  the  color  is 
seen  coming  to  the  cheek. 

The  cool  breath  of  the  mountain,  which  con- 
stantly kisses  this  little  paradise  during  even  the 
sultry  months  of  summer,  together  with  the 
beautiful  surrounding  scenery,  are  alone  enough 
to  delight  the  heart,  banish  the  dull  feeling  of 
affliction,  and  tune  the  aching  heart  with  health 
and  happiness. 

The  large,  fine  hotels  at  this  place  and  at  Colo- 
rado Springs  are  principally  occupied  by  invalids 
who  come  with  fortunes ;  while  there  are  hun- 
dreds of  wagons  standing  among  the  trees,  with 
tents  by  their  sides,  in  which  they  stay  who  come 
with  spare  frames  and  sparer  fortunes.  I  have 
gone  among  these  many  wagons ;  and  while  I 
found  some  comfortably  located,  with  all  neces- 
saries and  conveniences,  I  also  found  some 
wretched  families,  with  scarcely  enough  to  eat 
and  not  sufficient  clothing  to  hide  their  wasted 
frames.  Some  are  stretched  upon  miserable 
couches,  with  the  shades  of  death  upon  their 
countenances.  Medical  skill  has  broken  the 
feeble  means,  but  life  continues  to  waste ;  and 
now,  with  the  last  few  cents,  they  come  to  drink 
of  the  free  fountain  of  Nature.  I  have  often 


260 


thought,  as  I  saw  so  many  afflicted  gathered 
round  these  wells,  of  the  healing  waters  of 
which  the  Bible  speaks,  which  the  angel  came 
down  to  trouble.  While  there  are  deaths  now 
and  then,  a  greater  portion  of  the  invalids  go 
away  mended. 

Besides  afflicted  persons,  there  are  many 
wealthy  families  who  come  here  to  recuperate 
and  spend  the  summer-season.  They  usually 
lodge  at  Colorado  Springs,  and  take  their  daily 
rides  down  to  Manitou  fountains, — often  in 
the  finest  vehicles,  with  beautifully  matched 
teams,  which  are  kept  for  this  purpose.  What 
a  contrast  between  these  hale,  hardy  persons,, 
who  are  rolling  in  luxury  and  happiness,  and 
those  fever-racked  invalids  in  the  little  tents  on 
the  hill-side. 

The  water  is  very  unpalatable;  and  though  a 
person  can  not  drink  more  than  a  swallow  or 
two  at  first,  by  sipping  at  it  daily  it  will  at 
length  taste  very  well,  and  can  be  drank  freely. 
The  soda-spring  is  used  the  most,  though  the 
others  are  best  in  many  cases — according  to  the 
complaint. 

Here  is  the  place,  sick  friends,  to  drink ; 
For  the  angel  of  life  stands  on  the  brink. 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  261 

We  were  all  very  anxious  to  ascend  Pike's 
Peak;  but  upon  inquiry  we  found  it  to  be  thir- 
teen miles  from  Manitou  to  the  summit,  and 
was  usually  ascended  by  burroes  (donkeys), 
which  were  kept  there  for  that  purpose.  Ac- 
cordingly, arrangements  were  made  for  starting 
the  next  day.  Before  the  appointed  time  we 
went  among  the  long-eared  herd  which  was  soon 
to  take  us  up  the  mountain -side,  each  one  won- 
dering which  one  would  be  selected  for  his  seat, 
and  how  the  ugly  things  would  ride  anyhow. 
Here  we  learned  that  four  other  tourists  were  to 
accompany  us — this  increasing  our  number  to 
eight,  including  the  driver.  At  the  appointed 
hour  the  saddles  were  placed  upon  these  little 
samsons,  and  without  halter  or  bridle  we  mount- 
ed for  the  trip.  Will  remarked  as  he  mounted 
that  the  people  in  Nebraska  always  rode  with 
bridles,  and  that  he  thought  it  a  very  poor  way 
anyhow  to  place  your  life  within  the  power  of  a 

d d  jackass.     A  loud  yell  from  the   driver, 

and  the  herd  started  forward.  As  the  road  was 
not  unusually  rough  for  a  montainous  country, 
nor  the  ascent  very  steep,  we  got  along  very 
well  the  first  mile ;  but  then  the  road  became 
very  rough.  And  so  steep  was  the  ascent  that 


262  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

often  the  little  creatures  that  carried  us  stood  al- 
most perpendicular  upon  their  hind  feet,  and  the 
path  was  so  narrow  that  we  had  to  go  single  file- 
Thus  we  went  on,  the  driver  remaining  in  the 
rear,  applying  a  great  whip  to  the  burroes  with- 
out mercy  whenever  necessity  required  it.  At 
the  expiration  of  about  three  hours  we  came  to- 
the  half-way  house,  and  halted  to  partake  of 
some  refreshments  and  to  warm  by  the  fire,  as 
the  air  was  getting  cool.  Soon  the  driver  an- 
nounced the  time  to  start  on,  and  we  remounted. 
We  were  now  above  timber-line;  and  nothing 
appeared  before  us  but  the  bald  and  rugged 
mountain.  On  we  went,  winding  our  course 
among  the  huge  rocks  and  up  the  gorges  until 
we  arrived  at  such  an  elevation  that  breathing 
became  difficult,  and  one  of  our  companions  be- 
gan bleeding  at  the  nose.  Here  our  new  com- 
panions announced  their  inability  to  go  any  far- 
ther; and  they  proceeded  at  once  upon  the  re- 
turn. After  bidding  them  good-by,  we,  to- 
gether with  the  guide,  pushed  forward,  deter- 
mined to  stand  upon  Pike's  Peak,  or  find  that  it 
was  impossible  to  do  so.  As  we  ascended  the 
air  continued  to  grow  lighter,  and  affected  our 
breathing  considerably ;  but  we  were  now  near- 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  263 

ing  the  summit,  and  being  so  absorbed  with 
glowing  thoughts  of  standing  upon  the  great 
peak,  we  still  went  on,  uttering  no  word  of  com- 
plaint. At  length  we  arrived  upon  the  summit. 
The  dutiful  little  creatures  swung  their  long  ears 
back  and  forth  as  though  they  felt  as  glad  as  we. 
Here  we  were,  fourteen  thousand  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea,  far  above  all  surrounding  ob- 
jects, and  naught  but  the  horizon  to  bound  our 
vision.  There  is  here  a  United  States  signal- 
station;  and  the  officer  lives  in  a  little  stone 
house.  He  says  that  he  stays  here  the  year 
round,  going  down  to  the  valley  now  and  then ; 
and  Indians  never  bother  him.  He  says  that 
the  elevation  does  not  affect  him  much,  as  he 
had  become  somewhat  used  to  the  light  air. 
Upon  inquiry  concerning  the  weather,  he  told 
us  that  he  was  sometimes  visited  by  violent 
thunder-storms ;  and  the  lightning  played,  upon 
the  mountain-top,  at  times  ingulfing  him  in 
electric  fire  and  rocking  his  little  house.  Dense 
clouds  of  vapor  hung  around  the  mountain  far 
below,  and  we  fully  realized  that  we  were  indeed 
above  the  clouds.  After  descending  we  learned 
that  while  we  were  upon  the  summit,  with  the 
sun  brightly  shining  above  our  heads  and  the 


264  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

snow  glittering  beneath  our  feet,  a  tine  warm 
shower  was  fulling  from  the  clouds  into  the  val- 
ley below.  After  having  enjoyed  the  novelty  of 
wading  snow-bariks  in  the  summer-season  to  our 
satisfaction,  we  were  ready  to  descend.  So,  with 
many  happy  wishes  for  our  mountain  friend,  we 
began  to  go  down.  This,  however,  was  not  very 
pleasant;  for  every  step  the  burro  made  he  jerked 
his  rider  severely.  Will  remarked  that  he  did 
not  mind  riding  donkeys  as  long  as  they  stood 
on  their  hind  feet;  but  he  could  not  go  it  when 
they  stood  on  their  heads.  It  is  certainly  re- 
markable to  see  these  small  animals  carrying 
more  than  their  own  weight  upon  their  backs; 
and,  notwithstanding  the  steepness  and  rough- 
ness of  the  road,  they  seldom  lose  their  footing, 
— though  I  once  saw  one  descending  a  steep 
bluff  with  a  load  upon  his  back  that  made  him 
groan,  and  losing  his  footing,  he  tumbled  down 
the  mountain  and  dashed  his  life  out  upon  the 
rocks  in  the  gully  below.  They  have  proved 
to  be  of  great  service  in  mountain  regions;  and 
hundreds  of  them  are  daily  climbing  and  de- 
scending their  rocky  sides. 

In  due  time  our  party  arrived  safely  at  Mani- 
tou — the  trip  having  cost   us  just  five   dollars 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  265 

apiece.  We  had  now  seen  and  experienced  the 
changes  in  the  atmosphere  from  the  lovely  val- 
ley below,  to  the  mountain-top  far  above  the 
clouds.  We  had  gone  in  one  day  from  where 
the  air  was  perfumed  with  the  odor  of  sweet, 
tinted  blossoms  and  flowers,  to  the  land  of  snow- 
banks where  vegetation  did  not  grow.  We  had 
seen  the  tall,  graceful  pines  dwindle  to  low, 
dwarfy  shrubbery,  and  then  give  way  to  the 
cold,  bare  mountain.  It  was  a  lesson — a  prac- 
tical and  instructive  one.  We  now  felt  consid- 
erably exhausted,  which  we  manifested  by  re- 
tiring an  hour  earlier  than  usual.  We  felt  a  little 
sore  the  next  morning,  but  were  soon  as  nimble 
as  ever.  It  usually  takes  between  five  and  six 
hours  to  ascend,  and  between  four  and  five  to 
descend ;  and  many  persons  can  not  stand  it  to 
go  up  at  all.  The  trip  should  not  be  made  in 
one  day. 

W  e  had  now  been  here  some  days ;  and  though 
it  seemed  to  us  a  life-time  could  be  spent  in  this 
beautiful  valley,  we  were  compelled  to  leave  for 
other  scenes. 

The  Garden  of  the  Gods,  so  often  spoken  of 
by  the  tourist  as  a  pretty  place,  we  learned  was 
but  two  miles  ofF;  and  we  concluded  to  visit  this 


266  KOMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

natural  curiosity.  The  road  to  the  garden 
wound  like  a  serpent  among  the  rugged,  rocky 
mountains,  and  with  much  difficulty  we  passed 
along.  It  was  not  long  before  we  came  to  a 
curious  object.  It  was  the  wonderful  balancing 
rock.  This  huge  stone,  weighing  many  tons, 
rests  upon  another  stone  with  a  foundation 
of  but  about  a  foot.  It  is  apparently  just  bal- 
anced, and  looks  as  though  it  could  be  tilted  by 
little  power.  It  is  a  wonder;  and  we  gazed 
upon  it  with  interest.  The  road  ran  by  its  side, 
and  it  appeared  to  be  somewhat  risky  to  drive 
by.  Will  said  he  would  go  and  throw  it  over; 
and  he  was  soon  seen  with  his  shoulder  against 
the  mountain  of  stone,  fully  believing  himself 
able  to  overbalance  the  rock.  But  his  strength 
was  not  a  mite  to  what  was  required,  and  he  gave 
it  up.  I  found  that  there  was  no  danger,  and 
drove  by  in  safety.  Another  mile  among  the 
brush  and  rocks,  where  the  trail  of  the  mountain- 
goat  was  fresh,  and  we  passed  between  two  gigan- 
tic natural  pillars  of  stone,  and  opened  into  a 
level,  lovely  valley,  about  six  hundred  yards  in 
length  and  two  hundred  in  breadth,  richly  car- 
peted with  soft,  green  grass.  Surrounding  it 
were  towering  rocks  of  red  granite  some  three 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  267 

hundred  and  thirty-seven  feet  high,  and  of  all 
shapes, — some  of  them  presenting  a  grotesque 
though  beautiful  appearance.  Occasionally  there 
might  be  seen  a  little  grass-spot,  with  here  and 
there  a  bush,  away  up  in  the  mountain  crevices, 
among  which  sported  the  birds  of  gaudy  plum- 
age, singing  their  sweet  songs  of  glee.  The 
little  conies  sported  here  and  there  from  rock  to 
rock,  and  the  mountain-sheep,  with  their  long 
snowy  coats,  stood  far  up  among  the  bluffs  look- 
ing shyly  upon  us ;  and  we  sat  viewing  the  sur- 
rounding curiosities.  How  appropriate  the 
name  "  Garden  of  the  Gods ! "  We  camped 
here  for  the  night  at  the  foot  of  what  is  known 
to  the  tourist  as  the  perpendicular  rocks.  Up 
in  the  mountain  just  outside  the  garden  was  a 
pretty  little  lake  of  clear  water,  and  taking  a 
bucket  I  started  up  with  the  team  to  water  them 
and  bring  some  to  camp.  Will,  being  much  at- 
tracted by  the  scenery,  at  once  began  climbing 
the  rocks,  expecting  to  arrive  at  an  elevation 
from  which  to  obtain  a  more  extensive  view  of 
the  surroundings,  while  Doc.  remained  at  the 
wagon  loading  shells  for  our  rifles.  Scarcely 
had  I  arrived  at  the  lake  when  I  became  startled 
by  the  cries  of  Will,  who  was  now  rushing,  roll- 


268  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

ing,  and  tumbling  down  the  mountain  toward 
the  wagon,  yelling  out,  "  Bear,  bear !  "  I  hast- 
ened to  the  wagon,  and,  seizing  my  big  rifle, 
started  to  the  rescue.  Doc.  had  already  arrived; 
but  the  terrified  Will  rushed  down  the  gorge 
like  an  arrow,  with  his  hat  in  one  hand  and  his 
gun  in  the  other,  not  noticing  us  nor  slackening 
his  speed  until  he  was  safely  in  the  wagon -bed ; 
and  he  did  not  stop  his  noise  until  he  was  tired 
out.  We  struck  bruin's  trail  in  the  sand  and 
followed  it  for  some  distance,  and  at  length 
caught  sight  of  him ;  but  before  I  could  salute 
him  with  a  rifle-ball  he  entered  a  dark  cave 
among  the  mighty  rocks.  We  went  to  the 
mouth  and  dared  him  out ;  but  he  did  not  come, 
and  we  had  good  reasons  for  not  going  in.  He 
was  a  medium-sized  black  bear,  and  looked  as 
though  he  might  be  a  pretty  good  squeezer.  The 
chase  was  now  ended,  and  after  procuring  a  few 
specimens  of  rock  we  went  to  camp.  Will  had 
quieted  down,  and  upon  our  making  fun  of  him 
and  asking  him  why  he  did  not  shoot  the  bear,  he 
said  that  it  was  so  rough  up  among  the  rocks  to 
skin  an  animal,  and  so  far  down  to  the  wagon  to 
carry  the  meat,  that  he  thought  the  bear  would 
follow  him  right  into  camp,  where  he  would 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  269 

kill  him  and  have  it  handy.  The  scheme  would 
have  appeared  very  plausible  could  he  have  ex- 
plained that  infernal  yelling.  Presently,  upon 
looking  upward,  we  saw  a  mountain-squirrel 
skipping  about  among  the  rocky  ledges ;  and  as 
the  sharp  report  of  a  six-shooter  rang  out  upon 
the  evening  breeze,  we  were  delighted  to  know 
that  we  were  to  have  rich  squirrel- soup  for  sup- 
per. Night  soon  came  on,  and  the  blankets 
were  spread  for  retiring.  But  Will  was  excited, 
and  said  that  he  did  not  calculate  to  take  his 
chances  of  going  to  sleep  in  a  place  where  the 
bears  were  sticking  among  the  rocks,  and  pan- 
thers and  wild  cats  were  working  their  scratches 
out  and  in,  practicing  for  a  grab,  while  rattle- 
snakes were  looking  out  at  us  from  every  little 
bunch  of  grass;  "for,"  said  he,  "the  devil  knows 
what  may  happen,  and  no  one  be  awake  to  see 
it."  I  felt  very  sure  that  Will  would  not  sleep 
much  that  night;  and  knowing  that  if  he  saw 
danger  he  would  make  noise  enough  to  awaken 
us  and  alarm  even  bruin  himself — as  he  did  be- 
fore,— we  concluded  to  retire  as  usual,  taking 
the  precaution,  however,  to  picket  the  horses 
close  to  camp,  as  they  readily  scent  strange 
animals  and  snort ;  and  this  was  also  a  guard. 


270  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

In  the  morning  after  breakfast  we  took  a 
short  ramble,  looking  at  the  many  curiosities 
and  natural  beauties  in  and  around  this  lovely 
green  pass.  Hundreds  of  names  are  carved  or 
written  upon  the  rocks  here;  and  the  names  of 
Miller  and  Llewellen  are  painted  in  large  letters 
upon  the  very  crest  of  a  rock  several  hundred 
feet  high.  The  side  upon  which  the  names  are 
written  is  as  perpendicular  as  though  it  had  been 
hewed  down  by  human  design ;  and  it  is  also 
very  steep  on  the  other  side,  where  the  parties 
must  have  climbed  up  and  then  leaned  over  in 
the  swimming  space  to  write.  It  must  have  re- 
quired great  labor  to  get  there ;  and  nothing  but 
a  burning,  ambitious  desire  to  be  where  man  had 
never  been, — and  where  so  few  could  go, — could 
have  led  these  men  to  climb  so  far  in  the  air  and 
register  their  names  upon  the  very  margin  of  the 
death-register;  for  if,  in  climbing,  the  foot  or 
hand  hold  had  given  way,  the  body  would  have 
been  precipitated  to  the  level  without  hope. 

Glory  is  sought  in  curious  places, 

Over  land  and  on  the  sea ; 
But  these  were  its  faintest  traces — 

So  at  least  it  seemed  to  me. 

We  were  not  as  full  of  adventure  as  they ;  so 
we  cut  our  names  in  the  base  of  a  smooth,  red 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  271 

rock  that  towered  far  above  us  and  came  to  a 
point  like  a  spire. 

While  working  here  we  noticed  a  small  hole 
at  the  bottom  of  the  same  rock,  just  large 
enough  for  a  man  to  crawl  through ;  and  upon 
examination  we  found  that  it  was  the  entrance 
to  a  cave.  The  hole  was  smooth,  and  looked  as 
though  it  had  been  used.  It  took  some  time  to 
convince  Will  that  the  bear  he  had  seen  could 
not  get  in  there.  But  at  length  we  all  concluded 
to  enter  the  dark  dungeon  ;  so,  after  arming  our- 
selves, we  took  a  lantern  and  a  few  tallow  can- 
dles and  crawled  in.  After  going  but  a  few  feet 
we  could  stand  erect ;  and  then,  each  with  a  light 
in  his  hand,  we  penetrated  the  cavern,  which  ran 
into  the  body  of  the  solid  rock.  It  was  twenty 
feet  high  and  ten  feet  wide,  and  so  ascending 
that  we  were  obliged  to  crawl  upon  our  hands 
and  knees  as  we  proceeded.  The  floor  was  cov- 
ered with  dust  from  the  rocks ;  and  in  this  we 
could  see  many  tracks,  some  imitating  the  wild 
cat  and  the  panther.  We  did  not  know  what  we 
might  come  in  contact  with ;  but  being  full  of 
curiosity  we  crawled  on  until  we  came  to  the 
end,  which  was  fully  twenty  yards  from  the  en- 
trance. Here  a  small  stream  of  water  gushed 


272  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

forth  from  the  side  of  the  cavern,  and,  after  run- 
ning a  short  way,  terminated  in  a  small  pool 
worn  in  the  rocky  floor,  from  which  it  sunk  un- 
perceived  away.  We  tasted  the  water,  and 
found  it  cool  and  pure;  and  in  the  lamp- 
light it  glittered  like  crystal.  We  now  de- 
scended to  the  entrance,  and  looking  carefully 
at  the  wall  we  found  several  names  cut  there, 
apparently  some  years  since ;  and  we  registered 
there  also,  and  then  made  our  exit. 

We  had  now  seen  all  the  curiosities  of  this 
beautiful  garden,  and  prepared  to  leave.  It  is 
only  possible  to  travel  through  the  rugged 
mountains  by  way  of  the  natural  passes;  and 
we  were  compelled  to  go  out  by  the  balancing 
rock — the  way  we  entered.  The  road  was  rough 
and  narrow ;  but  we  passed  along,  conversing  of 
the  great  beauties  of  nature,  and  at  sunset  we 
stopped  for  the  night  upon  our  old  camping- 
ground  near  Manitou. 

During  the  evening  we  had  conversations  with 
several  persons  familiar  with  the  surrounding 
country ;  and  they  gave  a  glowing  account  of  the 
South  Park,  representing  it  to  be  a  beautiful, 
open  country,  lying  just  over  the  Green  Horn 
range,  about  forty-five  miles  from  Manitou,  and 


THROUGH  THE   WEST.  273 

that  it  abounded  with  deer,  antelope,  elk,  etc., 
and  that  a  large  bear  had  been  killed  but  a  few 
days  before  among  the  South  Park  pines.  We 
were  also  informed  that  this  was  a  favorite 
hunting-ground,  and  that  small  bands  of  Indians, 
who  claimed  the  ground,  were  constantly  wan- 
dering through  the  park  in  search  of  game ;  and 
considering  white  hunters  trespassers,  they  often 
gave  them  much  trouble.  I  had  already  seen 
many  of  the  red  race,  could  speak  many  words 
in  their  own  tongue,  and  had  become  so  used  to 
their  appearance  that  the  quills  and  plumes  did 
not  scare  me  much ;  and  the  boys  being  delight- 
ed to  hear  of  a  country  which  afforded  an  op- 
portunity to  try  their  new  guns,  we  determined 
to  visit  the  place,  notwithstanding  a  little 
danger. 


18 


274  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 


CHAPTER     II. 

Start  for  South  Park— Ute  Pass— Rainbow  Falls— South  Park 
—Bear  Fight— Lead ville— Sallie  Ray— Chimney  Gulch— 
Trout-Fishing — Denver — Cheyenne — Black  Hills  —  Bitter 
Creek — Antelope  Springs — Wolf  Adventure — Green  River 
—Old  Emigrant  Road— Echo  Canon— Utah— Park  City- 
Ontario  Mine— Quartz-Mill— Kinds  of  Mines— Prospecting 
—Start  for  Salt  Lake. 

The  next  morning  we  rose  at  the  dawn  of  day, 
and  after  breakfast  we  filled  our  jug  with  soda- 
water  and  journeyed  for  South  Park.  There 
was  but  one  accessible  route  from  this  place  in 
that  direction,  and  that  was  up  through  the  fa- 
mous Ute  Pass. 

We  had  gone  about  a  mile  up  the  pass  when 
we  came  to  the  Rainbow  Falls,  to  the  left  of  the 
narrow  road.  The  waters  of  a  mountain  stream 
roll  over  a  precipice  one  hundred  feet  high  ;  and 
as  it  dashes  over  the  rough,  projecting  crags  and 
is  lashed  into  foam  against  the  rocky  sides,  its 
roaring  can  be  heard  far  up  and  down  the  pass. 
During  the  forenoon  in  summer  the  sun  reaches 
this  place,  and,  striking  the  crystal  waters  as 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  275 

they  roll  over  a  certain  large  rock,  a  most  perfect 
and  beautiful  rainbow,  with  brightest  tints,  is 
reflected  upon  the  rocks  at  the  side  of  the 
chasm.  Hence  the  name,  "Rainbow  Falls." 
Tourists  to  Manitou  are  usually  taken  up  here 
on  burros. 

The  walls  on  either  side  of  the  pass  were  a 
couple  of  hundred  feet  high,  and  at  some  places 
almost  met  over  our  heads ;  and  the  gorge  was 
so  narrow  that  there  were  but  few  places  where 
wagons  could  pass.  It  appears  as  though  an  all- 
wise  Hand  had  hewed  out  this  pass  with  an  ex- 
press design ;  for  there  would  be  no  other  possi- 
ble way  by  which  these  rugged  and  towering 
mountains  could  be  crossed.  Though  the  way 
was  yet  rough  and  steep,  we  greatly  appreciated 
our  privilege. 

It  was  now  necessary  for  one  of  us  to  go  on 
ahead  to  give  the  proper  warning  to  outfits  com- 
ing down  the  pass ;  and  though  we  had  traveled 
but  about  fifteen  miles  it  was  dark  when  we 
came  to  the  top  of  the  range,  and  our  horses 
were  much  fatigued ;  and  having  walked  all  the 
way  ourselves  to  lighten  the  load,  we  also  felt 
much  worried,  not  being  used  to  mountain 
travel.  So  as  soon  as  the  horses  were  properly 


276  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

cared  for  and  supper  was  over,  we  at  once  pre- 
pared our  couches  and  lay  down  to  sleep  on  the 
cold  crest  of  the  Green  Horn  range,  at  an  eleva- 
tion of  ten  thousand  feet  above  the  sea.  The 
night  was  very  cool ;  but  we  were  among  the 
pines,  and  building  a  good,  warm  fire,  we  slept 
quite  comfortably. 

We  had  just  laid  down  when  the  horses  set 
up  such  a  snorting  as  to  plainly  indicate  that 
something  strange  was  nearing  our  camp. 
Quickly  buckling  on  our  belts  and  snatching 
our  rifles  we  ran  into  the  darkness,  and  crawling 
cautiously  in  the  direction  indicated  by  the 
frightened  animals,  we  lay  flat,  awaiting  the  ap- 
proach of  some  wild  animal,  or  thinking  that 
perhaps  Indians  were  lurking  around  the  camp 
watching  for  our  team.  Presently  the  rustle  of 
a  chain  was  heard,  and  Will  excitedly  growled 
out:  "Boys,  the  devil's  got  us  this  time;  he  has 
his  chain  along."  Soon  the  object  could  be  seen 
slowly  moving  toward  us,  and  from  its  appear- 
ance I  was  slow  to  contradict  Will's  assertion. 
However,  as  it  came  nearer  we  found  it  to  be  a 
burro,  with  a  chain  to  its  neck.  This  little  creat- 
ure had  probably  strayed  from  its  owner,  or 
perhaps  escaped  from  a  massacred  outfit,  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  277 

not  wishing  to  be  alone  had  come  to  our  camp 
by  the  fire-light.  After  scouting  around  camp  a 
short  distance,  we  again  lay  down. 

The  next  morning,  though  in  the  heart  of 
summer,  the  water  that  we  had  left  in  a  bucket 
was  frozen  so  hard  that  it  could  hardly  be  broken 
with  the  hand.  Taking  an  early  start  we  re- 
newed our  journey. 

We  were  yet  about  thirty  miles  from  the  park; 
but  being  now  upon  the  top  of  the  ridge,  and 
the  rest  of  the  road  descending  all  the  way,  we 
expected  to  camp  in  sight  of  the  park  that 
night.  Instead  of  walking  all  the  way,  as  the 
day  before,  we  could  now  have  the  satisfaction 
of  riding  at  least  part  of  the  way.  We  were 
not  used  to  such  hills ;  and  we  soon  concluded 
that  it  was  easier  to  go  up-hill  than  down.  The 
road  was  in  some  places  so  steep  that  we  had  to 
lock  all  the  wheels  and  tie  a  log  in  front  of  the 
hind  wheels,  and  then  tie  ropes  to  the  wagon 
and  hold  back  besides,  to  assist  the  horses  in 
their  descent.  It  was  very  tiresome ;  but  we 
went  down  pretty  rapidly,  and  at  sunset  we 
camped  by  a  little  spring  that  nestled  beneath  a 
large  rock  in  sight  of  the  great  South  Park. 

The  next  morning  we  went  down  into  the 
park  in  search  of  a  good  place  to  camp.  In  a 


278 


mile  or  two  we  came  to  a  little  stream,  and  after 
following  its  meanderings  a  few  hundred  yards 
we  found  it  bubbling  from  a  beautiful  spring  at 
the  foot  of  a  high  bluff.  The  whole  surround- 
ing was  carpeted  with  richest  pasturage;  and 
now  having  the  two  most  necessary  elements  for 
the  forming  of  a  first-class  camp,  namely,  water 
and  pasture,  we  concluded  to  stop  here  while 
hunting  through  the  park. 

The  description  given  us  of  this  valley  was 
not  iu  the  least  exaggerated ;  for  it  would  be 
difficult  to  imagine  a  more  delightful  place. 
One  does  not  appreciate  a  pretty  valley  until  he 
has  climbed  around  awhile  among  the  rough, 
barren  mountains  where  the  wild  goat  harbors ; 
and  then  when  he  comes  from  the  rocky  cliff 
into  an  opening  like  this,  several  miles  in  length 
and  a  half  mile  broad,  the  floor  almost  level  and 
richly  carpeted,  dotted  here  and  there  with  little 
quakenasp  groves,  among  which  the  fountains 
head  and  send  their  crystal  streams  down  the 
pretty  green  slopes,  he  sees  it  in  its  fullness,  and 
justifies  the  name  "park,"  or  even  paradise. 

"We  looked  upon  the  surroundings  and  were 
delighted  ;  and  we  congratulated  ourselves  upon 
our  good  fortune  in  having  the  opportunity  to 
behold  this  beautiful  garden  of  nature. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  279 

Having  been  warned  of  the  Indians,  our  first 
work  was  to  prepare  a  little  fort  for  a  retreat, 
should  it  be  necessary.  There  were  several  trees 
that  had  been  blown  up  by  the  roots  lying  close 
to  camp ;  and  cutting  these  into  logs  we  rolled 
them  in  shape  and  made  quite  a  fort.  Will  was 
now  left  here  while  Doc.  and  myself  started  out 
through  the  park  in  search  of  meat  for  supper. 

After  roving  around  for  some  time,  viewing 
the  pretty  valley  and  looking  for  game,  we 
caught  sight  of  a  herd  of  deer ;  but  being  too 
far  off  we  did  not  shoot,  and  disappearing  in  a 
quakenasp  grove  they  were  not  seen  again. 

We  were  already  quite  a  distance  from  camp ; 
and  as  the  sun  was  fast  disappearing  behind  the 
mountains,  we  now  felt  the  necessity  of  retrac- 
ing our  steps.  On  nearing  camp,  Doc.  succeeded 
in  killing  a  large  jack-rabbit;  and  this,  with 
some  nice  biscuits,  was  our  supper. 

The  shades  of  night  had  now  gathered,  and 
we  prepared  to  retire.  The  horses  were  brought 
near  camp,  and  driving  the  large  iron  picket- 
pins  deeply  into  the  earth,  they  were  firmly  fast- 
ened, lest  they  should  break  loose  and  escape 
should  anything  extraordinary  occur.  The  fire 
was  now  extinguished,  that  no  enemy  would  be 


280 


directed  by  it  to  our  camp ;  and  we  lay  down 
within  our  little  fort  to  sleep.  Nature  could  not 
have  formed  a  more  beautiful  night.  The  sky 
was  thickly  studded  with  stars,  and  not  a  cloud 
was  to  be  seen.  The  zephyrs  softly  and  noise- 
lessly fanned  the  valley,  and  but  one  noise  could 
be  heard — that  was  the  sweet  murmur  of  the 
little  brook  which  rippled  among  the  roots  and 
pebbles  by  the  very  side  of  our  bed.  We  for  the 
first  time  felt  lonely,  and  realized  that  the  music 
of  nature  is  sweet.  Soon  our  eyes  were  closed 
in  slumber;  and  without  even  a  dream  to  disturd 
us,  we  slept  sweetly  until  morn. 

We  ate  a  hearty  breakfast, — which  was  chiefly 
the  rich,  delicious  flesh  of  the  antelope, — and 
then  concluded  to  make  another  hunting-expe- 
dition, similar  to  the  one  the  day  before.  Our 
belts  were  filled  with  cartridges,  and  our  six- 
shooters  and  knives  were  buckled  about  us ;  and 
taking  our  big  rifles,  we  left  Will  in  camp  as 
usual,  and  went  off  down  the  park.  We  came 
to  a  stream  that  rolled  down  the  mountain-side 
among  the  thick  pines ;  and  knowing  that  deer 
kept  in  the  thickets  during  the  day,  coming  out 
night  and  morning  to  eat  in  the  clear  valleys,  we 
concluded  to  follow  this  stream  up  the  mountain. 


THROUGH    THE  WEST.  281 

We  caught  sight  of  game  on  several  occasions ; 
but  the  tirr.ber  was  so  dense  that  we  could  not 
see  it  until  frightened,  and  we  arrived  at  the 
mountain-top  at  twelve  o'clock  without  making 
a  successful  shot.  I  now  sought  a  clear  place ; 
and  climbing  upon  a  huge  rock  I  placed  the 
field-glass  to  my  eyes,  and  looking  down  over 
the  tree-tops  into  the  "valley  below  I  could 
plainly  see  our  camp.  The  horses  were  quietly 
grazing  near  by,  and  Will,  from  his  position  at 
the  fire,  was  probably  getting  dinner.  As  every- 
thing seemed  quiet,  we  felt  no  uneasiness  con- 
cerning camp ;  and  being  but  about  four  or  five 
miles  therefrom,  we  started  over  the  opposite 
side  of  the  mountain.  We  soon  came  to  a  small 
crystal  lake ;  and  for  the  first  time  since  enter- 
ing the  park  we  saw  Indian  signs.  There  were 
many  tracks  upon  the  brink  of  the  lake;  and 
some  being  quite  fresh,  we  were  convinced  that 
we  came  but  a  little  too  late  for  company.  Sev- 
eral small  canoes  were  floating  loosely  upon  the 
water,  and  we  supposed  them  to  be  used  merely 
as  pleasure-boats ;  for  as  the  lake  was  about  one 
hundred  yards  in  diameter,  they  could  be  of  but 
little  use  in  travel.  A  boat-ride  in  the  wild 
mountains  is  a  rarity,  and  Indian  or  no  Indian, 


282 


ROMSPERT S   TRAVELS 


THE      MOUNTAIN      LAKE. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  283 

we  concluded  to  have  a  boat-ride  right  there. 
So  stepping  aboard,  I  plied  the  rude  oars,  and 
we  shot  over  the  lake.  It  was  fine  sport,  and 
we  felt  pretty  good  over  a  free  boat-ride.  After 
the  first  excitement  had  worn  off,  we  began  to 
•consider  our  position.  We  were  rowing  the 
Indian's  canoe  upon  his  own  waters,  and  if  seen 
by  him  would  be  considered  trespassers ;  and  at 
that  very  moment  the  eagle-eyes  might  be  watch- 
ing us  from  the  surrounding  pine-thickets. 
Though  we  did  not  care  a  darn  for  the  trespass, 
we  fully  realized  our  helpless  position  in  case  of 
an  attack,  so  we  pulled  for  the  shore. 

Half  of  the  afternoon  had  already  passed  away, 
and  feeling  pretty  good  over  the  boat-ride,  we 
started  for  camp.  About  an  hour  before  sunset 
we  came  to  a  very  rugged  part  of  the  mountain, 
and  feeling  considerably  wearied  we  sat  down 
upon  a  log  to  rest.  While  looking  around  at 
the  pretty  scenery,  we  saw  a  small  woolly  animal 
lying  in  the  leaves  at  the  foot  of  the  tree  upon 
which  we  sat.  It  was  apparently  asleep ;  and  ap- 
proaching it  cautiously  we  got  within  a  few 
steps  of  it,  when  it  discovered  us  and  sprung  to 
its  feet.  It  was  a  cub  bear.  We  rushed  upon  it, 
captured  it,  and  concluded  to  take  it  to  camp 


284 

alive.  The  little  fellow  kept  up  a  continuous 
growling  and  snapping;  and  after  finding  itself 
completely  overpowered  it  uttered  a  loud,  pierc- 
ing cry,  which  was  answered  by  a  terrific  roar 
just  behind  us  in  the  bushes.  Doc.  said  we  had 
played  h 1  now ;  and  turning  around  we  be- 
held two  large  grizzly  bears,  with  roach  up  and 
froth  on  their  lips,  rush  out  of  the  bushes  but 
a  few  rods  away,  and  with  angry  snarls  were 
coming  upon  us.  The  grizzly  bear  is  the  most 
ferocious  of  the  bear  tribe,  and  will  attack  the 
hunter  with  the  most  desperate  and  persevering 
fierceness,  especially  in  the  defense  of  its  young. 
The  brutes  were  closely  upon  us,  and  not  a  mo- 
ment was  to  be  lost.  Raising  our  large  rifles  to- 
our  shoulders,  we  both  fired  at  the  same  in- 
stant; but,  unfortunately,  both  shots  were  fired 
at  the  same  bear,  which  for  a  moment  stood 
paralyzed  and  then  fell  over  dead.  The  other 
one  was  already  standing  upon  his  hind  feet 
within  a  few  feet  of  Doc.,  extending  his  affection- 
ate arms  for  a  hug,  and  from  the  looks  of  his 
mouth,  a  kiss  too.  In  attempting  to  reload  his- 
rifle  he  found  that  the  shell  had  stuck  in  the 
chamber,  so  dropping  the  rifle  he  drew  his  six- 
shooter  ;  but  before  he  could  fire  it  was  knocked 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  285 

from  his  hand  by  the  powerful  paw.  Again 
Doc.  grabbed  up  his  gun,  and  by  repeated  blows 
with  the  heavy  barrel  over  the  nose,  which  is  the 
most  tender  part  of  the  bear,  he  succeeded  for  a 
few  minutes  in  keeping  bruin  at  bay.  All  this 
was  the  work  of  an  instant,  and  I  saw  the  neces- 
sity of  a  shot  from  my  big  rifle  to  stop  the  in- 
furiated beast.  So,  having  shoved  a  cartridge 
into  the  chamber,  I  took  deliberate  aim  at  the 
heart  and  fired.  The  bear  shifted  just  as  I  pull- 
ed, and  instead  of  the  ball  striking  the  heart,  it 
entered  a  few  inches  above  the  intended  mark, 
crushing  the  shoulder-bone.  This  completely 
disabled  the  left  fore  leg,  and  the  animal  fell  at 
the  report  of  the  gun ;  but  after  rolling  over  two 
or  three  times  upon  the  ground,  he  again  reared 
upon  his  hind  feet  and  renewed  the  contest  with 
apparently  increased  fury.  We  now  used  the 
six-shooters, — known  as  forty-fives, — and  which 
were  also  deadly  weapons.  Nine  shots  were 
fired,  when  the  frenzied  beast  became  subdued 
and  fell  dead  at  our  feet.  Upon  examination, 
eight  of  these  shots  were  found  to  be  simply 
flesh-wounds,  yet  a  solitary  ball,  having  pene- 
trated the  heart,  would  necessarily  have  pro- 
duced death.  The  conflict  was  now  over, 


286 


and  we  looked  about  for  the  pet  cub.  Just 
around  the  edge  of  the  cliff  we  saw  an  entrance, 
leading,  as  we  supposed,  into  a  cave  among  the 
rocks.  Here  was  doubtless  the  abode  of  the 
bruin  family ;  and  we  supposed  that  the  cub  had 
gone  in,  but  had  no  particular  desire  to  go  in  to 
see. 

We  were  soon  on  our  way  to  camp,  each  car- 
rying a  bear-hide  and  a  chunck  of  the  meat. 
The  hides  were  dried,  and  proved  to  be  of  much 
service.  During  the  day  they  served  as  cushions 
for  seats,  and  when  the  nights  were  cold  they 
were  our  warmest  covering.  As  we  had  often 
heard  of  bear-flesh  being  the  most  delicious  of 
all  meats,  we  were  anxious  for  a  taste.  Accord- 
ingly, a  quantity  was  at  once  placed  upon  the 
fire  for  supper.  We  were  a  little  disappointed; 
but  having  exercised  considerable  during  the 
day,  it  nevertheless  tasted  very  well. 

The  next  morning  we  set  out  to  cross  the  park. 
About  3:00  p.  M.  we  arrived  at  the  opposite  side, 
and  concluded  to  camp  until  the  morrow. 
We  had  scarcely  halted  when  a  single  Indian 
came  out  of  the  pines,  and  manifesting  friendli- 
ness, came  up  to  our  camp.  He  could  speak  a 
few  words  in  English ;  and  we  soon  found  that 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  287 

he  wanted  a  shooting-match.  We  disregarded 
his  solicitations  for  a  little  while ;  but  he  still  pre- 
sisted.  Doc.  then  took  his  rifle  in  his  hand,  and 
making  him  understand  that  he  was  the  poorest 
shot  in  the  party,  showed  him  that  he  would 
shoot.  The  Indian  appeared  delighted ;  and 
walking  away  three  hundred  yards,  he  cut  a 
notch  in  a  tree  with  his  tomahawk,  and  with  ut- 
most satisfaction  came  back  to  shoot.  He  ex- 
pressed his  desire  that  Doc.  should  shoot  first; 
and  without  ceremony  he  fired,  striking  the 
center  of  the  white  chip.  The  red-man  gave 
his  shoulders  a  shrug,  and  with  an  "ugh"  of 
surprise  he  refused  to  make  a  shot,  and  was  soon 
gone  away  disgusted  into  the  pines.  There 
were  doubtless  many  others  among  the  surround- 
ing hills,  and  this  one  had  perhaps  come-out  to 
test  our  ability  with  the  rifle.  They  are  cautious 
about  approaching  the  unerring  ball,  but  at  the 
same  time  entertain  comparatively  little  fear  from 
the  awkward  marksman.  They  have  entertained 
this  dreadful  fear  of  the  big  rifle  in  the  hand  of 
a  good  marksman  ever  since  the  year  1860,  when 
a  party  down  in  Texas  were  rounded  up  by 
buffalo-hunters  and  the  most  of  them  picked  off 
at  a  very  long  range.  This  information  is  in  every 


288  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

tribe,  and  will  doubtless  become  proverbial. 
"Why,"  they  say,  "  the  big  bullets  are  whizzing 
down  in  Texas  yet,  hunting  Indians." 

The  next  morning,  while  preparing  breakfast, 
two  other  Indians  appeared  and  asked  for  some- 
thing to  eat.  We  did  not  hesitate  to  share  with 
them,  and  they  eat  greedily.  I  might  here  re- 
mark that  during  the  whole  of  our  extended 
journey,  notwithstanding  that  \ve  were  often  ap- 
proached by  the  hungry  Indian  as  well  as  white 
man,  we  never  refused  to  share  eat  and  drink, 
no  matter  how  scanty  our  supply. 

Having  heard  so  much  about  Leadville  for  the 
last  few  months,  and  seeing  such  vast  numbers  of 
emigrants  daily  winding  their  way  to  the  mount- 
ain of  wealth,  we  concluded  to  give  it  a  visit  also. 
We  could  hear  the  whistles  blow,  and  see  great 
columns  of  smoke  rising  from  between  the  hills 
when  we  were  yet  fully  fifteen  miles  away.  We 
began  to  see  dead  horses  and  mules  by  the  way ; 
and  as  we  proceeded  the  numbers  increased  until 
within  a  mile  or  so  of  the  place  the  way  was 
literally  strewed  with  dead  animals;  and  there 
was  not  a  spear  of  grass  left  for  our  horses 
to  graze.  We  at  length  arrived  at  the  great 
center  of  excitement;  but  the  scene  I  can 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  289 

not  describe.  The  place  lies  between  two  ridges, 
and  is  nine  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
sea.  No  costly  mansions,  built  with  time  and 
care,  adorn  the  place,  and  no  spacious  business 
blocks,  with  their  beautiful  polished  fronts,  are 
seen ;  but  the  great  mining  metropolis  of  the 
Union  stands  with  her  hastily-reared  cabins 
among  the  green  stumps  of  the  late  forest,  and 
her  hundreds  of  tents  glitter  upon  the  hill- 
sides that  have  been  left  rugged  by  the  spade  of 
the  hungry  miner.  Snow  glistens  upon  the 
crests  of  the  high  mountains  in  every  direction. 
Its  cold  breath  brings  chill  to  the  camp,  and 
the  nights  are  very  cold. 

The  population  is  estimated  at  twenty  thou- 
sand ;  and  with  fully  one  half  of  these  miserably 
located  in  wagons,  and  insufficient  coverings, 
there  is  much  misery.  Like  unto  the  finding  of 
gold  at  the  discovery  of  America,  the  populace 
had  been  excited  far  and  near,  and  the  greedy 
seekers  of  the  precious  metal  came  rushing  to 
this  find  in  the  cold,  bleak  mountains  like  perish- 
ing cattle  to  the  pool.  West-bound  trains  were 
every  day  behind  time  with  their  terrible  loads 
of  people,  who  did  not  consider  that  there  could 
be  no  accommodations  in  a  place  so  rapidly 

19 


290 


sprung,  and  the  consequences  were  hunger  and 
exposure.  This  resulted  in  disease ;  and  at  one 
time  many  were  daily  swept  away  by  pneumo- 
nia. The  horses,  too,  standing  unsheltered  upon 
the  mountain-slopes  by  the  hundreds,  with  no 
pasture  but  the  green  twigs  of  the  fallen  trees, 
and  the  little  feed  that  some  of  their  owners 
could  afford  to  buy,  contracted  diseases;  and  the 
town  was  literally  surrounded  with  dead  animals. 
Many  poor  men,  depending  upon  their  teams  for 
support,  were  entirely  broken  up.  Persons 
coming  by  wagons  usually  had  a  small  stock  of 
provisions  and  beds  along;  but  the  thousands 
who  came  from  the  East  by  rail  were  at  the 
mercy  of  those  who  were  prepared  to  board  and 
lodge.  There  were  boarding-tents  stuck  upon 
the  hill- sides,  and,  though  all  could  not  be  ac- 
commodated, meals  were  from  one  to  two  dollars 
apiece.  There  were  other  lodging-cabins,  and 
this  was  from  fifty  to  one  dollar  per  night.  I 
have  seen  persons  who  just  came  from  the  East, 
and  not  wishing  to  peril  their  health  by  exposure 
in  the  cold  night-air  of  the  mountain,  offer  five 
dollars  for  a  comfortable  night's  lodging.  They 
had  plenty  of  money,  but  the  accommodation  was 
not  to  be  had ;  and  many  a  person  from  a  good, 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  291 

warm  bed  lay  here  shivering  in  the  folds  of  a 
single  thin  blanket,  and  paid  an  exorbitant  price 
for  the  privilege.  There  was  one  large  hall,  which 
was  built  at  the  beginning  of  the  excitement,  and 
which  now  rented  at  seventeen  hundred  dollars 
per  month.  It  was  used  as  a  saloon,  and  had  two 
bars,  with  two  tenders  and  a  cashier  behind  each ; 
and  day  and  night  the  drinks  were  issued  as  fast 
as  these  men  could  tend.  The  spare  part  of 
the  hall  was  let  out  to  lodgers ;  and  persons  paid 
fifty  cents  per  night  to  wrap  themselves  in 
their  own  blankets  and  sleep  spoon-fashion 
upon  the  floor.  The  floor  was  covered  every 
night.  It  would  be  difficult  to  even  imagine  the 
amount  this  firm  daily  realized.  There  being  no 
railroad  here,  everything  had  to  be  freighted  in 
over  rough  mountain-roads,  and  of  course  was 
very  high.  There  was  but  one  route  by  which  a 
railroad  could  reach  the  place,  and  that  was  up 
the  grand  canon  of  the  Arkansas ;  and  this  was 
just  wide  enough  for  one  track.  The  Denver  & 
liio  Grande  and  Atchisori,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe 
companies  both  saw  the  great  prospect  for  a  road 
to  Leadville,  and  they  both  began  to  extend 
their  tracks.  They  came  to  the  canon  at  the 
same  time,  and  a  quarrel  arose  as  to  which 


292  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

should  enter.  Each  company  employed  squads 
of  men  to  guard  its  workmen,  and  gave  them 
five  dollars  per  day;  but  great  bowlders  would 
tumble  down  the  canon  from  several  hundred 
feet  above,  and  thud  heavily  in  the  waters  below 
whenever  work  was  begun.  This  war  was 
waged  for  some  time,  during  which  several  men 
were  killed.  At  length  United  States  troops 
were  called  to  the  scene,  and  General  Sherman 
came  out  to  quell  the  war.  The  matter  was 
taken  to  .court,  and  after  a  decision  in  favor  of 
the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  Railroad  the  little 
narrow-gauge  wound  up  the  gorge  to  the  town. 

Persons  who  bought  property  here  at  the 
early  stage  of  the  excitement  suddenly  rose  to 
men  of  wealth ;  for  a  lot  in  the  heart  of  town 
was  worth  far  more  than  a  lot  in  the  center  of 
Dayton,  Ohio.  Many  shrewd  persons  made  for- 
tunes here,  in  various  ways ;  and  some  lost  all 
they  had.  I  will  venture  that  there  are  many 
returned  to  the  East  with  Leadville  experience 
to-day  who  will  consider  before  they  rush  wildly 
to  another  find  in  the  cold,  bleak  mountain  in 
the  winter-season. 

In  connection  with  this  sketch  of  Leadville  I 
feel  constrained  also  to  add  something  that  will 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  293 

doubtless  be  interesting  to  many,  as  showing  the 
physical  and  financial  ability  of  woman  us  well 
as  Leadville  opportunities.  Mrs.  Sallie  Kay, 
known  as  the  Leadville  washer- woman,  has  to- 
day an  income  of  thirty  thousand  dollars  per 
annum,  owning  property  in  Leadville  that  rents 
for  two  thousand  dollars  per  month.  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  brief  history  of  this  wonderful 
woman :  She  was  born  in  the  north  of  Ireland 
in  the  year  1830,  and  came  to  New  York  when 
she  was  fifteen  years  of  age.  She  there  married 
a  book-keeper  named  Joseph  Ordway.  He  soon 
died,  and  she  went  west  to  Leavenworth,  Kansas. 
From  there  she  went  to  Denver,  and  finally,  in 
1867,  to  Leadville.  In  Denver  she  married  a  man 
named  Frank  Kay ;  but  he  died  soon  after,  leav- 
ing to  her  a  daughter,  Cora,  now  a  pretty  girl  of 
about  seventeen  years.  Her  career  has  been  a 
peculiarly  eventful  and  exciting  one,  and  would 
doubtless  make  an  interesting  little  volume. 
She  has  dug  in  mines,  fought  in  Indian  wars  by 
the  side  of  her  husband,  scoured  the  plains  on 
horseback  as  a  scout,  and  became  an  expert  at 
the  business.  She  braved  the  dangers  and 
storms  of  winter,  where  Leadville  now  stands, 
before  there  were  houses  to  inhabit;  and  she 


294  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

says  she  used  to  keep  Cora  wrapped  up  in  warm 
blankets,  day  and  night,  to  keep  her  from  freez- 
ing. She  helped  found  the  city  of  Leadville, 
mapped  roads,  built  houses,  and  took  in  washing 
from  the  miners.  When  the  place  became  set- 
tled, the  land  she  had  taken  up  turned  into  a 
fortune;  and  as  the  silver  rattled  down  the 
wash-board  she  felt  herself  growing  rich.  She 
weighs  about  one  hundred  arid  forty  pounds. 
Having  her  property  all  in  the  hands  of  good 
agents,  she  is  taking  her  ease. 

There  are  constantly  finds  being  made  that 
create  a  great  excitement  at  first ;  but  in  most 
cases  they  prove  inferior  to  expectation,  and 
soon  die  away.  On  the  contrary,  this  has  proved 
a  good  camp ;  and  from  the  rich  finds  that  are 
being  made  every  once  in  awhile  the  whole  town 
and  its  surroundings  appear  to  be  threaded  with 
rich  veins  of  silver-quartz.  We  were  not  greedy 
or  in  any  wise  excited,  however,  and  concluded 
to  leave  the  place  and  steer  for  Denver,  the 
queen  city  of  the  West. 

We  passed  down  Chimney  Gulch,  the  great 
natural  pass  through  the  towering  Rocky  Mount- 
ains, and  in  which  roll  the  clear  waters  of  a 
beautiful  mountain-stream. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  295 

We  camped  one  evening  in  this  gulch,  fifteen 
miles  from  Denver,  and  thought  to  try  our  hands 
at  fishing.  We  never  had  success  in  fishing 
in  clear  waters,  where  the  fish  could  see  us ;  so, 
of  course,  we  sought  a  place  where  the  water 
was  shaded.  After  finding  a  place  where  the 
water  whirled  into  foam  round  a  rock,  and  grass 
floated  on  the  eddy,  we  cast  our  hooks ;  but  in 
spite  of  the  soft,  delicious  fat  meat  that  we  sus- 
pended there  was  nary  a  bite. 

There  were  some  fellows  out  from  the  city, 
also ;  and  they,  too,  were  fishing,  but  with  bet- 
ter success.  They  came  up  to  where  we  were ; 
and  seeing  the  place  in  which  we  were  fishing 
and  the  bait  we  used,  they  burst  into  a  hearty 
laugh,  and  asked  us  if  we  were  not  cat-fishers 
from  Arkansas.  Will  was  a  little  insulted  at 
this  remark,  and  told  them  that  the  fishers  were 
all  right  but  the  darned  fish  were  just  like  the 
people  out  west  here — used  to  eating  nothing  but 
mud  and  grasshoppers,  and  did  not  know  what 
meat  was. 

I  was  willing  to  be  called  anything,  so  I  could 
catch  fish  ;  so  I  went  to  their  wagon,  and,  finding 
that  they  had  a  nice  bucket  of  trout,  I  decided 
to  take  a  little  piscatorial  information.  I  learned 


296  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

that  trout  stayed  only  in  clear  water,  and  were 
from  six  inches  to  a  foot  in  length.  The  fishing 
is  usually  done  with  a  fiy ;  that  is,  a  little  red 
feather  tied  just  over  the  hook.  When  baiting 
is  used,  grasshoppers  are  the  best;  and  meat  will 
not  do  at  all.  Will  was  right.  The  hook  is 
cast  into  the  water  where  trout  are  seen,  or  where 
there  are  rocks  or  logs  under  which  they  are 
likely  to  be,  and  then  dragged  up  and  down  to 
attract  attention.  The  hook  is  sometimes  drawn 
past  the  fish  several  times  without  notice,  and 
of  a  sudden  a  dart  is  made  at  the  fly  or  bait ; 
and  in  either  case  he  usually  sticks. 

We  had  better  success  in  our  fishing  after  this 
lesson;  but  we  also  learned  that  it  took  ingenu- 
ity and  lots  of  experience  to  catch  speckled 
trout.  Finding  the  grasshoppers  few,  and  the 
best  jumpers  we  ever  saw,  we  concluded  that 
the  fish  we  could  catch  would  not  satisfy  the 
hunger  engendered  in  capturing  the  baits;  so 
we  gave  up  the  sport  to  look  at  the  mountain 
curiosities. 

The  walls  upon  either  side  of  the  gulch  tower 
several  hundred  feet  high,  and  in  some  places 
are  almost  perpendicular.  The  gulch  is  very 
narrow  here  and  there,  and  the  stream  takes  up 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  297 

nearly  the  whole  pass.  In  these  places  the  way 
has  been  worked  and  walls  of  stone  have  been 
built.  We  thought  the  people  of  Denver  had 
done  this  through  necessity,  and  never  even 
dreamed  of  a  toll-gate.  But  in  the  morning,  as 
we  came  near  the  mouth  of  the  gulch,  we  found 
a  fair  tree  suspended  in  the  way ;  and  were  asked 
•one  dollar,  or  ten  cents  per  mile,  for  the  privi- 
lege of  passing  under.  Well,  there  was  but  one 
thing  to  do,  for  even  the  best-trained  burro 
•could  not  climb  round  the  gate,  and  the  man 
who  stood  in  the  door  of  his  little  cabin  with 
his  belt  of  six-shooters  on,  looked  as  though  he 
meant  to  collect  his  toll,  so  we  paid  the  bill  and 
drove  out  from  the  mighty  walls  upon  the  pretty 
level  prairie. 

It  was  Sabbath  morning,  and  the  sun  phone 
"brightly.  The  tolling  of  the  church-bells  could 
be  distinctly  heard,  while  the  spires  rose  high 
and  glittered  in  the  sunlight.  It  was  a  delight- 
ful morning,  and  we  passed  merrily  along,  anx- 
ious to  stand  in  the  beautiful  streets  of  the  west- 
ern Jerusalem.  We  soon  met  the  folks  from  the 
-city  riding  out  in  their  fine  carriages,  enjoying 
the  soft,  pure,  morning  air,  and  we  thought  of 
home.  We  had  a  white  cover  upon  our  wagon, 


298  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and  as  the  little  ones  passed  by  they  would  ex- 
citedly call  out  to  pa  and  ma  to  look  at  the 
gypsies.  When  near  the  city  we  met  two  young 
men  on  horseback  who  were  disagreeing  as  to 
the  distance  of  the  mountains  that  hung  upon 
the  edge  of  the  prairie  in  the  direction  from 
whence  we  came.  One  was  acquainted  with  the 
country  and  knew  the  distance ;  but  his  comrade- 
was  insisting  that  it  was  but  three  miles  at  most. 
So,  standing  as  he  was  between  the  great  confi- 
dence he  had  in  his  friend,  and  his  own  judg- 
ment, based  upon  real  observation,  he  came  to 
us  acknowledging  his  fresh  arrival  from  the 
East  and  inexperience  in  the  country,  and  asked 
for  the  truth.  "We  had  been  in  his  fix  at  Pike's 
Peak,  and  though  realizing  his  position,  we  told 
him  it  was  full  fifteen  miles,  and  drove  on. 

We  at  length  came  to  the  city  and  camped  in 
a  pretty  grove  upon  the  banks  of  the  South 
Platte  that  rolls  along  the  edge  of  the  corpora- 
tion. It  was  a  cool,  delightful  spot,  and  there 
was  a  wagon  beneath  almost  every  tree,  while 
great  numbers  of  children  were  playing  in  the 
cool  shade.  Some  had  come  here  to  spend  the 
summer  and  had  large  tents  up,  and  cooking- 
stoves,  and  other  household  furniture.  They 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  299 

live  comfortably  in  the  pure,  soft,  open  air.  We 
went  into  the  city,  and  were  greatly  pleased  with 
its  fine,  large  buildings,  and  pretty,  dry  streets. 
The  principal  hotels  are  the  American,  Inter- 
ocean,  and  Grand  Central.  These  are  very  fine 
houses,  and  are  usually  crowded  to  their  utmost 
during  the  summer  by  persons  who  come  here  to 
spend  their  vacations  for  their  health.  There  are 
persons  in  Denver  who  say  they  came  here  hope- 
less invalids,  and  to-day  they  are  stout  and 
hearty.  The  population  is  said  to  be  forty 
thousand ;  but  from  the  fact  that  there  are  so 
many  transient  persons,  it  is  hard  to  estimate. 
The  post-office  is  large,  and  has  three  general 
deliveries,  each  taking  charge  of  the  mail  under 
certain  letters  of  the  alphabet.  These  deliveries 
are  opened  for  a  short  time  whenever  a  mail  ar- 
rives; and  persons  looking  for  mail  have  to  be 
on  time.  There  are  so  many  persons  here  from 
the  East,  and  who  have  no  boxes,  that  to  avoid 
rushing  and  confusion  they  are  made  to  form 
rows  and  march  up  in  regular  order — the  little 
one  standing  an  equal  show.  These  rows  some- 
times reach  clear  out  of  the  house  and  far  down 
the  sidewalk,  and  persons  often  stand  at  the  de- 
livery fifteen  minutes  before  it  opens  so  as  to  be 


300  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

first ;  for  sometimes  the  window  is  closed  before 
all  are  served.  The  city  is  very  thrifty;  and  at 
the  time  we  were  there  fifteen  hundred  houses 
were  said  to  be  in  process  of  erection.  All 
kinds  of  business  is  flourishing,  and  workmen 
appear  to  be  encouraged.  Law  is  excepted,  for 
there  are  more  lawyers  here  than  would  be  nec- 
essary to  do  three  times  Denver's  legal  business. 
Just  south  of  the  city  is  located  the  largest  gold 
and  silver  smelter  (it  is  said)  in  the  world.  By 
miners,  farmers,  stock- raisers,  and  tourists  the 
city  is  supported.  North  and  east  of  the  city 
there  are  several  hundred  acres  of  good  farming- 
land  ;  and  the  very  best  crops  of  wheat,  potatoes, 
oats,  etc.,  and  some  splendid  fruit  also,  are  raised. 
Of  course  it  is  all  done  by  irrigation ;  but  the 
mountain-streams  are  near,  and  the  broad,  level 
fields  are  easily  flooded. 

Our  next  place  was  Cheyenne,  Wyoming,  which 
lay  about  one  hundred  and  ten  miles  to  the  north  ; 
so  taking  a  last  look  we  left  the  beautiful  city 
behind  and  journeyed  up  the  Kansas  Pacific 
Kailway.  There  was  a  well-broken  road  all  the 
way,  and  we  glided  smoothly  along,  crossing 
over  the  Little  Thompson  Creek,  and  near  by 
Fort  Collins,  and  soon  entered  the  city.  It  is 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  301 

situated  upon  the  north  bank  of  a  branch  of  the 
South  Platte,  called  Crow  Creek,  and  is  sur- 
rounded by  barren  hills.  The  great  Union  Pa- 
cific Railroad  runs  through  the  place,  and  the 
Colorado  Central  and  Kansas  Pacific  roads  ter- 
minate here.  There  is  a  great  deal  of  mining- 
machinery  manufactured  here,  and  this,  with  the 
railroad  shops,  stock-raising,  and  the  govern- 
ment fort  near  by,  is  what  supports  the  town. 
The  town  is  somewhat  scattered,  and  the  build- 
ings are  mostly  old  and  very  common.  There 
are  many  saloons  and  gambling-houses;  and 
though  there  are  undoubtedly  some  good  citizens 
here,  the  people  generally  are  pretty  rough  char- 
acters— the  female  portion  not  excepted.  How- 
ever, the  place  is  not  nearly  so  notorious  as  years 
ago,  when  it  is  said  they  used  to  have  ,a  man 
every  morning  for  breakfast.  We  paid  here 
four  cents  per  pound  for  potatoes,  three  cents  for 
corn,  five  cents  for  flour,  and  for  other  things  in 
proportion. 

Our  young  friend  William  Gray  here  con- 
cluded that  things  were  not  like  they  were  in 
old  native  Nebraska, — to  which  he  was  fervently 
attached;  and  not  wishing  to  experience  any 
more  changes,  see  any  more  Indians,  or  get  any 


302  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

farther  from  home,  he  concluded  to  go  back 
where  father's  chimney  helped  make  the  morn- 
ing fog.  So,  mounting  his  pony,  he  bid  us 
good-by,  and  loped  out  of  sight  down  the  rail- 
road with  a  light  heart,  and  the  determination 
to  live  and  die  and  be  buried  in  blessed  old 
Nebraska. 

"Will  had  hardly  gone  when  two  young  men 
named  June  and  Hugh  Goodrich  came  to  our 
camp ;  and  finding  that  we  were  on  our  way  to 
California,  and  that  we  wanted  company,  they 
made  application,  and  we  concluded  to  go  to- 
gether. They  were  brothers,  and  were  then  on 
their  way  from  Missouri  to  Oregon.  We  were 
in  camp  together  but  a  few  days  until  we  found 
that  though  they  were  inexperienced,  they  were 
nevertheless  good,  honest  boys;  and  we  were 
proud  of  our  new  companions. 

We  now  started  for  the  notorious  Black  Hills 
that  lay  along  both  sides  of  the  line  between 
Wyoming  and  Dakota,  and  one  hundred  miles 
to  the  north.  There  was  a  wagon-road  leading 
from  Cheyenne  directly  to  the  hills,  and  taking 
this  we  crossed  over  the  Platte  Eiver.  In  a  few 
days  we  were  in  sight  of  the  hills.  They  are 
high,  rugged,  and  perfectly  barren,  and  the  sur- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  303 

face  is  so  dark  as  to  have  the  appearance  of 
burnt  prairie.  Hence,  the  name  Black  Hills. 
We  pushed  on  up  to  Camp  Bradley,  and  then 
visited  some  of  the  mines.  The  miners  say  that 
this  is  undoubtedly  the  richest  mining-district  in 
the  West ;  but  for  mining  there  is  much  water 
needed,  and  this  they  lack.  The  artesian  experi- 
ment is  being  tried,  but  thus  far  with  poor  suc- 
cess. But  should  this  eventually  succeed,  min- 
ing-stock in  the  Black  Hills  will  be  at  a  pre- 
mium. Work  is  going  on,  however,  but  the 
pannings  are  light. 

The  Indians  have  been  a  reigning  terror  to 
the  miners  here,  and  whole  outfits  have  been 
murdered  on  the  way,  while  men  were  every  day 
shot  down  with  picks  in  their  hands  by  the  hid- 
den foe.  The  little  camps  that  stick  here  and 
there  among  the  hills  are  made  up  of  men  who 
care  not  for  man  or  devil ;  and  a  rougher  set  I 
never  saw.  They  beat  cow-boys  badly.  There 
is  a  saloon  and  gambling-house  in  every  camp ; 
and  could  the  hills  but  speak,  they  would 
tell  of  crimes  as  black  as  the  sands  upon  their 
slopes.  The  hills  can  be  seen  from  one  or  two 
points  on  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad.  There  is 
a  branch  railroad  being  now  built  from  the 


304  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

Union  Pacific  a  little  west  of  Cheyenne  to  the 
hills. 

We  now  came  down  the  north  fork  of  the 
Cheyenne,  then  over  on  the  Powder,  and  then 
down  the  Platte  to  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad 
again,  and  started  west.  We  soon  came  to  Raw- 
lings,  a  place  spoken  of  in  connection  with  the 
White  River  agency  massacre  as  where  the 
troops  left  the  railroad  to  go  to  the  scene.  We 
now  opened  into  a  dry,  sandy  desert,  and  were 
compelled  to  make  forty  and  fifty  mile  drives, 
with  the  wheels  rolling  deep  in  the  soft  surface, 
to  reach  water. 

In  one  of  these  big  drives  we  came  to  a  little 
stream  called  Bitter  Creek,  that  flowed  noise- 
lessly down  a  ravine ;  and  the  first  impulse  was 
joy.  But  when  we  got  to  the  bank  we  found  a 
notice  stuck  up  warning  us  to  not  let  stock 
drink  for  the  water  was  poisonous.  It  was  as 
white  as  milk  with  alkali ;  and  we  wondered  if 
we  had  not  struck  the  land  that  flows  with  milk 
and  honey — however,  we  saw  no  honey  around. 
The  horses  wanted  to  drink,  but  we  carefully 
kept  them  from  it.  Taking  a  cup,  I  resolved  to 
taste  the  stuff',  poison  or  no  poison.  I  took  but 
a  little  sip,  and  was  satisfied ;  for  it  was  so 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  305 

strong  that  the  skin  came  off  my  lips  and  tongue 
wherever  the  water  touched. 

We  came  to  the  mountains  at  dark,  and  fol- 
lowing a  road  that  branched  off  down  a  deep 
gulch  to  the  right  we  traveled  about  two  miles 
and  opened  into  a  little  basin  covered  with  rich, 
green  grass,  and  where  the  pure,  cool  water  bub- 
bled from  the  toot  of  the  mountain  and  ran  oft 
down  the  hollow,  glittering  in  the  bright  moon- 
light. Having  just  come  out  of  the  scorching 
sands,  and  not  having  had  a  drink  of  good  water 
for  several  days,  the  cnmp  was  to  us  delightful; 
and  the  ponies,  after  quenching  their  thirst  from 
the  crystal  stream,  rolled  themselves  upon  the 
soft  lawn  and  went  to  grazing  the  tender  grass 
as  though  well  contented. 

There  were  several  other  outfits  there  also; 
and  by  one  of  the  wagons  a  splendid,  large, 
dark-bay  stallion  lay  dead.  The  horse  was  very 
dry  when  he  came  to  Bitter  Creek,  and  in  spite 
of  all  warning  his  owner  let  him  drink;  and 
though  he  took  but  a  few  swallows  of  the  ugly 
water  it  did  the  work. 

We  stayed  here  the  next  day  to  recruit  our 
team,  and  killed  a  fine  large  deer  that  came  to 
drink  at  the  water  below;  and  the  following 

20 


306  EOMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

morning  we  took  our  last  draught  from  the  cool 
waters,  and  rather  reluctantly  left  the  beautiful 
Antelope  Springs  to  climb  up  the  side  of  the 
mighty  mountain  to  the  west.  We  wound 
slowly  up  the  steep  side,  and  it  was  nearly  night 
before  we  reached  the  top.  When  once  there 
we  could  see  for  miles  around  over  the  rugged, 
barren  peaks  and  the  dry,  sandy  plains  of  Bitter 
Creek.  The  timber  was  but  dwarfy  bushes ;  the 
air  was  light  and  cool,  and  the  clouds  swept  by 
our  feet  along  the  crest  of  the  mountain,  being 
sometimes  so  thick  as  to  hide  objects  but  a  few 
yards  away.  We  looked  down  the  other  side, 
and  it  appeared  to  be  miles  to  the  bottom ;  for 
the  pines  in  the  valley  below  looked  like  little 
twigs  on  a  hazel-brush.  We  descended  but  a 
short  way  when  we  came  to  a  pretty  spring  and 
stopped  for  the  night ;  for  our  horses  were  very 
tired.  The  next  day  at  noon  we  reached  the 
bottom;  and  as  we  looked  back  it  seemed  as 
though  we  had  come  directly  down  from  the 
heavens. 

Here  stood  what  is  called  Quakenasp  Mount- 
ain ;  and  from  a  cliff  away  up  in  its  side  sprung 
a  stream  of  clear  water  which  came  tumbling 
down  over  the  rocks  like  a  cataract.  We  had 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  307 

heard  this  mountain  spoken  of  as  being  a  great 
place  for  game ;  so,  being  remarkably  fond  of 
hunting,  we  concluded  to  stop  and  try  our  hand. 
There  were  great  chasms  in  the  mountain-side, 
.and  these  were  filled  with  thick  growths  of 
quakenasp-trees  and  bushes,  down  among  which 
the  water  flowed  and  where  the  game  harbored. 

Leaving  the  Goodrich  brotheis  in  camp,  Doc. 
and  myself  each  strapped  a  blanket  upon  his 
back,  and,  taking  our  big  rifles,  we  started  up 
the  mountain.  We  saw  some  sign,  but  no  game 
•until  we  reached  the  top.  Looking  down  the 
other  side  \ve  saw  a  little  branch  running  down 
a  deep  hollow,  and  we  descended.  Here  the 
hanks  were  all  cut  up  with  the  sharp  hoofs  of 
the  deer  and  elk,  and  the  print  of  a  single  Indian 
moccasin  could  be  seen  in  the  soft  sand  at  the 
brink.  The  slopes  were  all  covered  with  sage- 
brush as  thick  as  a  man's  leg  and  as  high  as  his 
breast,  with  here  and  there  a  little  pine-tree.  I 
often  think  of  it  to-day  as  the  wildest-looking 
place  I  saw  in  all  my  travels. 

Our  camp  lay  just  over  the  mountain,  about 
four  miles  away ;  and  as  the  darkness  was  al- 
ready gathering  we  concluded  to  stay  here  till 
morning  and  shoot  the  game  as  it  came  to  the 


308  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

water.  So,  wrapping  ourselves  in  oar  blankets, 
we  lay  down  among  the  sage  brush  at  the  roots 
of  a  little  pine  sapling  that  stood  on  the  bank  of 
the  stream  and  were  dozing  sweetly  when  the 
piercing  howl  of  a  wolf,  that  appeared  to  be 
trailing  us  down  the  mountain-side,  broke  the 
deep  silence  and  roused  us  from  our  slumbers. 
Almost  instantly  howling  began  in  every  glen 
and  on  every  hill-side;  and  the  shrill  note& 
echoed  down  the  valley  in  which  we  lay.  We 
had  always  kept  a  fire  when  in  bad  wolf-coun- 
tries before;  but  thinking  that  there  was  no 
danger  here  we  had  avoided  fire  on  account  of 
the  game.  And  it  was  even  dangerous  to  start 
a  fire  here  among  the  dry  sage-brush  without 
first  carefully  clearing  a  place;  for,  should  the 
fire  break  out,  we  would  surely  perish  in  the 
flames.  What  was  to  be  done  must  be  done 
quickly,  for  the  brush  was  crashing  at  our  very 
sides  and  the  deafening  cries  rang  in  our  ears. 
Fire-arms  against  such  numbers  was  a  feeble  de- 
fense; and  there  being  no  other  tree  that  could 
be  reached  in  time,  we  both  sprung  into  the 
slender  sapling  that  we  knew  was  too  weak  to 
bear  us  up,  just  getting  out  of  the  way  when 
several  large  wolves  reached  the  tree.  Doc. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  309 

being  the  lightest  went  up  first,  and  I  stayed  as 
close  to  the  bottom  as  I  could  to  take  off  as 
much  weight  as  possible.  But,  just  as  we  had 
anticipated,  the  tree  was  too  weak ;  and,  bend- 
ing over,  Doc.  was  left  within  six  feet  of  the 
ground,  so  that  we  were  both  almost  within 
reach  of  our  hungry  foes.  Thicker  and  thicker 
they  came  and  louder  and  louder  they  howled 
until  they  looked  like  a  large  flock  of  sheep, 
and  we  could  not  hear  each  other  speak.  They 
became  so  ravenous  that  they  would  spring  up 
and  clash  their  foaming  jaws  together,  some- 
times within  a  few  inches  of  us,  and  now  and 
then  catching  parts  of  our  clothing,  and  blow- 
ing their  warm  breath  in  our  faces.  It  was  a 
critical  moment;  and  had  that  tree  been  high 
enough  I  would  have  climbed  up  to  the  moon. 
But  it  was  the  best  we  could  do ;  and  with  our 
knives  in  our  hands  we  struck  them  in  the  head 
as  they  jumped  up.  The  prey  was  so  near  that 
they  lost  themselves  in  anxiety  and  rage,  and 
would  spring  at  the  tree  and  gnaw  like  mad  ma- 
niacs. This  I  was  careful  to  stop  with  a  shot  or 
two  from  my  six-shooter ;  for  should  the  tree  be 
weakened  in  the  least  we  knew  very  well  that  it 
would  make  but  little  difference  to  us  who  got 


310 


to  be  president  of  the  United  States.  We  fought 
them  off  in  this  way  for  several  hours,  and  until 
there  were  many  killed  and  great  numbers 
wounded.  All  of  a  sudden — as  though  their  at- 
tention had  been  attracted  by  something  else — 
they  ran  off,  howling,  down  the  stream.  This 
was  our  opportunity ;  and  leaping  quickly  to  the 
ground  we  grabbed  our  rifles  and  ran  for  another 
and  larger  tree  that  stood  two  hundred  yards 
away.  We  got  about  half  way  when  we  found 
that  they  were  coming  back  ;  and  then  there  was 
a  race  for  life.  We  thought  that  the  sage-brush 
were  thicker  than  we  had  ever  seen  them ;  and 
it  appeared  as  though  the  tree  were  a  mile  off. 
On  we  went,  lunging,  leaping,  and  falling,  and 
the  howling  became  too  near  to  sound  nice. 
The  tree  is  but  a  few  yards  away,  yet  the  brush 
are  rattling  at  our  very  heels  and  the  angry 
growl  is  plain  to  our  ears. 

The  tree  is  reached,  and  we  each  spring  for  a 
limb  and  draw  ourselves  up  out  of  the  very 
mouths  of  our  enemies.  For  a  moment  we  are 
safe.  But,  great  horror !  Just  at  that  moment 
Doc.'s  limb  broke,  and  he  fell  back  among  the 
enraged  throng.  He  alighted  upon  his  feet, 
however,  and  leaving  his  rifle  fall  and  throwing 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  311 

his  blanket  from  his  shoulder  the  attention  of 
the  wolves  was  slightly  diverted,  and,  quick  as  a 
cat,  he  sprung  for  another  limb ;  but  before  he 
could  draw  himself  out  of  the  way  several  large 
fellows  firmly  fastened  their  fangs  in  the  legs  of 
his  pants,  and  I  thought  the  show  was  about 
over  with  him.  They  howled  and  raged  and 
tore,  with  their  game  in  their  very  jaws ;  but 
Doc.  held  to  the  limb  with  a  death-grip,  until 
I  shot  the  wolves  that  held  him  down,  and, 
drawing  himself  safely  up,  he  heaved  a  long 
sigh  of  relief  and  appeared  to  be  surprised  to 
find  that  his  legs  and  feet  were  all  there,  with 
but  a  few  light  scars. 

We  were  now  safe ;  but  the  wind  turning  cold 
about  midnight,  our  couch  in  the  tree  was  very 
unpleasant,  indeed.  The  pack  appeared  to  be 
bound  to  have  meat,  and  stayed  round  the  tree, 
howling  and  gnawing,  until  near  daylight,  when 
they  began  to  disperse,  and  the  noise  died  away 
among  the  rifts  and  gorges.  When  all  was 
quiet  and  the  night  was  done  we  stepped  to  the 
ground  much  relieved.  The  tree  was  terribly 
torn,  and  the  ground  and  brush  all  around  were 
smeared  with  blood  and  foam.  We  found  twen- 
ty large  wolves  lying  dead  among  the  sage- 


312 


brush,  with  wounds  from  knife  and  bullet. 
Great  pools  of  blood  stood  here  and  there,  and 
the  blankets  were  hanging  in  shreds  on  the 
brush.  We  had  had  wolf-calls  several  times ; 
but  that  \vas  the  most  disagreeable  call  we  had 
ever  experienced. 

We  did  not  think  it  worth  our  while  to  look 
for  game  in  that  part  after  such  a  night  of 
carousing,  so  taking  our  rifles  we  started  up 
over  the  mountain  for  camp.  We  got  near  the 
top,  when  hearing  a  racket  among  the  crags  and 
bushes  near  by,  we  dodged  behind  a  large  rock 
and  prepared  for  the  on  come.  Soon  a  large  elk 
dashed  from  a  deep  gorge,  and  started  off'  down 
the  mountain-side,  closely  pursued  by  several 
great  wolves.  Quickly  resting  our  rifles  against 
the  rock,  we  sent  our  lead  upon  the  elk ;  and 
with  a  jerk  of  the  head  and  a  high  leap  in  the 
air,  he  fell  dead  among  the  rocks,  and  the  wolves 
ran  oft'  in  fright.  It  was  the  largest  of  the 
species  that  I  had  ever  seen,  and  the  tips  of  its 
great  horns  were  five  feet  apart.  Taking  the 
tongue  and  saddle,  we  went  down  into  camp  and 
found  everything  all  right.  We  then  had  break- 
fast; arid  the  soft  flesh  was  delicious.  I  shall 
never  forget  that  night,  and  shall  ever  feel 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  313 

thankful  that  our  new  comrades  were  left  at 
camp ;  for  otherwise,  with  their  inexperience, 
the  result  would  certainly  have  been  bitter  to 
our  little  camp. 

Well,  we  were  now  ready,  and  again  rolled  on, 
crossing  over  a  dry,  barren  belt  of  country,  and 
at  length  arrived  at  Green  River,  a  little  town 
situated  on  the  banks  of  a  stream  from  which  it 
takes  its  name.  At  this  place  the  stream  is  one 
hundred  and  fifty  yards  wide,  and  the  water,  as 
indicated  by  the  name,  is  really  of  a  light- 
green  color.  It  is  also  very  clear  and  deceiv- 
ing, and  rolls  so  rapidly  that  it  is  considered 
a  very  dangerous  stream.  The  evening  that  we 
arrived  there  was  a  man  upon  the  opposite  shore 
with  a  large  herd  of  horses  that  he  had  raised  in 
Idaho,  and  which  he  was  driving  East.,  They 
persistently  refused  to  enter  the  water ;  but  after 
repeated  attempts  they  were  started  in.  Seeing 
them  drifting  far  down  the  stream,  he  swam  his 
horse  in  below,  intending  to  keep  them  up. 
He  was  known  to  be  an  expert  swimmer;  but 
the  herd  drifted  against  him,  and  in  some  way 
getting  dismounted,  he  was  borne  down  beneath 
the  surface;  and  the  fishes  that  sport  beneath  the 
green  waters  are  probably  to-day  playing  around 


314 


his  white  frame.  His  wife  and  two  children 
witnessed  the  terrible  sight  from  the  bank,  and 
were  almost  distracted  with  grief;  but  the  mad 
waters  rolled  on,  and  they  were  widow  and 
fatherless. 

There  was  a  whole  gang  of  miserable-looking 
Arkansas  emigrants,  with  their  ox-teams,  and 
old  wagons  with  tops  patched  with  dish-rags, 
old  hats,  etc.,  stopping  upon  the  bank,  and  think- 
ing themselves  unable  to  pay  the  ferryman's  bill 
of  three  dollars  per  wagon,  were  debating  what 
to  do  to  get  beyond.  The  price  was  exorbitant; 
and  finding  the  ferryman  a  very  independent 
gentleman,  I  jumped  on  a  pony  and  rode  into 
the  stream  to  try  its  depth.  The  waters  were 
very  clear,  and  I  found  the  depth  to  be  very  ir- 
regular,— some  places  being  very  deep,  and 
others  but  three  and  four  feet.  I  was  very  care- 
ful in  picking  my  route  and  marking  it  by  ob- 
jects upon  the  bank,  and  at  length  went  back  for 
the  wagon.  We  passed  ropes  under  the  bed 
and  lifted  it  up  to  the  top  rings  in  the  standards, 
and  after  putting  the  stoutest  horse  on  the 
upper  side,  and  tying  a  couple  of  stones  to  the 
axles,  we  drove  in.  This  was  an  anxious  mo- 
ment for  the  Arkansas  emigrants,  who  lined 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  315 

themselves  upon  the  bank  like  a  lot  of  mud-tur- 
tles in  a  morning-sun,  and  watched  every  turn. 
We  got  off  the  route  a  little  a  few  times,  and  the 
horses  could  hardly  keep  their  feet  in  the  deep 
water,  but  we  arrived  safely  beyond.  A  loud 
cheer  went  up  from  the  Arkansas  side  just  as- 
we  landed;  and  though  the  ferryman  became 
very  clever,  and  offered  his  services  very  reason- 
ably, the  oxen  were  yoked,  the  little  ones  loaded 
up,  and  in  they  came  in  our  course.  It  was  an 
interesting  sight,  and  we  stayed  to  see  it.  The- 
oxen  refused  obedience,  and  were  hard  to  man- 
age in  the  deep  waters,  and  several  times  some 
of  the  wagons  drifted  into  deep  places  and  the- 
water  came  up  in  the  bed,  driving  the  big  fat 
corn-fed  girls  to  the  side-boards  to  cry  for  help ; 
and  the  number  of  little  fellows,  as  they,  stuck 
their  unkempt  heads  out  from  under  the  cover 
of  many  colors,  looked  like  eagles'-nests  floating 
on  the  water.  The  old  he-Arkansaws,  however,, 
stayed  by  the  teams,  and  one  by  one  they  wound 
up  on  the  bank.  When  they  were  all  safely 
landed,  it  was  amusing  to  see  the  old  fellows  go- 
ing around  their  wagons  as  though  looking  if 
any  were  missing,  while  the  little  ones  jumped 
out  in  the  sand  and  sported  around  in  the  sun- 
like  little  wet  dogs. 


316 


We  then  moved  on,  and  the  next  day  camped 
at  the  edge  of  a  pretty  forest.  The  following 
notice  was  stuck  up  on  a  tree:  "Warning! 
Three  hundred  Indians  in  this  vicinity."  We 
kept  a  sharp  lookout ;  and  though  we  saw  some 
of  them,  we  had  no  trouble. 

We  were  now  traveling  on  the  old  California 
emigrant-road ;  and  every  few  miles  we  would 
find  stones  or  boards  stuck  up  at  the  road-side 
with  almost  obliterated  inscriptions  of  "Dora 
Sires,  killed  by  Indians,"  or,  died  of  fever,  etc., 
etc., — some  of  the  dates  being  as  far  back  as 
1850.  We  chatted  with  several  old  Forty-niners 
in  our  rounds,  and  they  told  us  many  interesting 
incidents  in  their  journey  through  the  wide, 
wild  regions.  They  say  they  used  to  go  in  large 
companies  for  their  protection  against  savages 
and  wild  beasts.  And  to  maintain  order  among 
themselves,  they  took  their  judges  and  law- 
yers along,  and  summary  justice  was  meted  out 
to  the  offenders  as  they  went  along.  Some- 
times the  sentence  was  death ;  and  in  this  case 
the  prisoner  dangled  from  the  limb  of  a  tree  by 
the  road-side. 

Passing  along  we  came  to  Evanston,  a  little 
town  on  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad,  and  near 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  317 

the  Utah  line.     Here  "we  entered  Echo  Canony 
down  through  which   ran  the  railway — in   fact 
this    being  the   only   way   the    insurmountable- 
heights  can  be  crossed.     This  canon  is  far  noted 
for  its  grandeur,  which  in  no  case  has  been    ex- 
aggerated.    After  we  had  gone  down   into  it  a 
few  miles,  we  found  the  walls  almost  perpen- 
dicular, and  from  eight  hundred  to  one  thousand 
feet  high ;  and  the  great  eagles  that  flew  from 
crag  to  crag  above  our  heads  looked  as  small  as 
swallows.     Upon  speaking  here  the  volume  was- 
greatly  increased,  and  an  ordinary  conversation 
echoed  far  down  the  canon.      Hence*  the   name,, 
"Echo  Canon."      There   is  a  little  stream  run- 
ning in  at  the  mouth  of  the  canon,  and  being^ 
fed  all  the  way  down  by  springs  that    roll  their 
waters  from  the  cliffs  above,  it  increases  to  quite 
a  creek.     At  some  places  the  canon  is  very  nar- 
row, and  the  stream  taking  up  nearly  the  whole 
way,   the  rail  and  wagon   roads  are  forced   to 
wind  along  the  side  of  the  mountains,  often  sev- 
eral hundred  feet  above.     The   road   at  these 
places  has  required  a  great  deal  of  labor  to  make 
it  passable,   and  is   so    narrow    that    should   a 
wheel   get   six   inches   out    of   the  way,   team, 
wagon  and  all  would  roll  down  the  steep   side 


318  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and  be  clashed  to  pieces  against  the  crags  and 
pines,  and  finally  thud  in  the  waters  far  below. 
There  are  places  all  along,  a  mile  or  two  apart, 
where  teams  can  pass,  and  it  is  the  duty  of  each 
outfit  to  keep  a  guard  ahead ;  but  in  case  outfits 
do  meet,  one  wagon  has  to  be  taken  apart  to  let 
the  other  pass.  Fierce  contests  sometimes  arise 
as  to  who  shall  undo.  At  these  places  look  out 
for  the  toll. 

There  are  many  of  these  great  gulches  and 
canons  in  the  mountains,  and  much  of  mountain- 
travel  is  done  over  lofty,  dangerous  roads. 
Sometimes -the  track  winds  around  the  mount- 
ain several  times,  and  then  runs  along  the  crest 
for  several  miles;  and  to  look  down  into  the 
-swimgning  space,  the  dark,  deep  passes  appear  like 
ways  into  the  center  of  the  earth.  I  have  often 
— through  curiosity — climbed  above  timber-line 
upon  the  side  of  the  mountain,  where  all  was 
bleak  and  rocky,  and  looked  down  the  steep, 
pine-decked  slopes.  There  are  often  rocks 
weighing  many  tons  just  hanging  on  the  steep 
aides,  and  can  be  pried  loose  with  little  effort ; 
and  it  is  amusing  to  start  them  down  the  mount- 
ain-side and  see  them  mow  the  pines  as  though 
they  were  straw,  leaving  a  swath  like  a  reaper, 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  319 

and  thudding  heavily  in  the  grassy  hollows  be- 
low. At  lonely  places  in  some  of  the  roads  that 
run  through  dark,  deep  canons,  there  are  bridges 
built  over  streams  and  gorges  by  private  indi- 
viduals, who  live  in  little  forts  by  the  way  and 
extort  the  most  exorbitant  rates  for  crossing 
over.  They  are  always  well  armed,  and  travelers 
are  forced  to  pay;  for  there  is  no  way  to  get 
around,  and  to  travel  back  over  the  steep,  rocky 
road  they  can  not  think  of.  There  is,  however, 
once  in  a  while  a  person  who  understands  the 
mountain  tricks ;  and  when  they  come  this  way 
there  are  some  lively  times  in  the  narrow  passes; 
and  doubtless  many  a  man  has  sent  up  his  soul 
from  the  rifts  among  the  rocks  by  these  lonely 
mountain-bridges. 

All  persons  en  route  for  the  Pacific  by  way  of 
the  Union  Pacific  should  keep  a  sharp  lookout 
for  Echo  Canon  and  view  its  grandeur,  as  the 
train  winds  slowly  down  between  its  towering 
walls. 

Coming  to  Echo  City,  a  little  mining-town  in 
the  canon,  we  branched  off  up  Weber  Canon, 
then  up  Silver  Creek  Canon  toward  Park  City, 
where  the  Ontario  Mine,  the  largest  and  richest 
silver-mine  in  Utah,  is  situated.  When  we 


* 


320 


were  yet  twelve  miles  off,  the  stream  that  comes 
down  from  the  mines  through  the  canon  was  so 
impregnated  with  rubbish  from  the  mines  and 
quartz- mill,  as  to  be  unfit  for  use  and  to  have  a 
silver  cast.  Hence  the  name,  "  Silver  Creek." 
Winding  up  the  steep,  rough  canon,  we  at 
length  came  to  Park  City, — which  is  but  a  few 
little  log  and  board  shanties  stuck  jnnong  the 
rocks  against  the  mountain, — and  learned  that 
it  was  just  a  half  mile  up  to  the  main  mine. 
The  way  was  up  a  gorge  that  was  so  steep  and 
rough  as  to  be  almost  inaccessible;  and  when 
we  arrived  we  were  tired  and  our  team  was  well 
jaded.  We  did  not  like  to  leave  them  below. 
Here  stood  a  large  frame  building ;  and  in  this 
the  shaft  was  sunk.  The  shaft  is  about  six  feet 
square,  and  there  was  a  large  engine  to  work  the 
windlass  to  let  the  miners  up  and  down  to  and 
from  work,  and  also  to  haul  up  the  quartz.  We 
found  the  superintendent  to  be  a  very  clever 
gentleman ;  and  he  promised  us  that  if  we 
would  wait  till  noon,  when  the  miners  had.  gone 
to  dinner,  he  would  let  us  down  the  shaft.  This 
we  gladly  assented  to,  and  we  were  accordingly 
let  down  into  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  five  hun- 
dred feet.  Here  we  found  several  chambers 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  321 

branching  out,  each  high  as  a  man's  head,  and 
ten  or  twelve  feet  square.  Four  large  engines 
were  standing  here  for  the  purpose  of  pumping 
out  the  water  should  a  vein  be  struck.  Engi- 
neers stand  ready  at  their  posts;  for  they  say 
water  often  bursts  in  the  mine  in  such  quantities 
as  to  cut  off  the  escape  of  the  miners  should 
there  be  no  pumps.  This,  then,  is  what  is 
called  flooding  the  mines.  The  metal  is  in  hard 
rocks,  called  quartz ;  and  these  rocks  run  in 
veins  through  the  earth,  usually  two  or  three 
feet  square.  Sometimes  the  veins  run  near  the 
surface,  and  at  other  times,  as  in  this  case,  far 
below.  Old  experienced  miners  can  generally 
tell  when  there  is  metal  below.  The  ceiling  is 
very  heavily  timbered  up,  and  torches  were  hung 
all  around.  The  miners  have  torches  fixed  on 
their  caps.  The  leads  in  this  step  had  run  out, 
but  there  was  another  shaft  running  down  still 
a  hundred  feet  deeper,  where  the  miners  were 
working ;  but  we  were  not  permitted  to  go  there. 
After  the  foreman  had  shown  us  all  around,  he 
gave  each  of  us  a  piece  of  quartz  as  big  as  a  fist, 
and  we  all  stepped  upon  the  elevator  to  go  up. 
The  light  at  the  top  of  the  shaft  looked  like  a 
star.  All  ready,  and  the  foreman  pulled  a  rope 

21 


322 


which  rang  a  bell  up  by  the  engineer,  and  away 
we  shot  up  the  dark  shaft,  and  soon  stood  in 
daylight.  There  is  a  saw-mill  here,  and  the  en- 
gines are  fired  with  wood.  There  are  several 
other  shafts  in  the  surrounding  hills ;  but  this  is 
the  main  one.  Four  bars  of  silver,  worth  two 
millions  of  dollars,  were  sent  to  the  mint  at  one 
time  from  this  place. 

We  now  went  down  to  the  quartz-mill  that 
stood  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain.  This  is  an 
immense  structure;  and  the  pounding  and  roar- 
ing of  the  ponderous  machinery  can  be  heard  a 
long  way  off.  We  were  permitted  to  go  all 
through  this  mill;  and  though  the  dust  and 
noise  were  very  disagreeable,  we  took  a  careful 
look  at  everything.  The  quartz  is  thrown  into 
a  huge,  long  trough,  and  is  mashed  by  powerful 
iron  stampers  that  are  worked  up  and  down  by 
machinery.  It  is  then  thrown  in  at  the  top  of 
a  big  furnace ;  and  at  a  certain  time  an  iron-cart 
is  run  under  the  furnace-grate,  and  the  red  metal 
is  stirred  down.  It  is  dumped  out  close  by  to 
cool.  This  is  very  hot  work ;  and  the  men  do- 
ing it  wear  sponges  over  their  mouths  and  nos- 
trils to  save  their  lungs.  There  is  then  an 
apartment  with  a  platform  about  four  feet  high 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  323 

upon  either  side,  with  steps  leading  up.  Upon 
•either  platform  there  are  six  tubs,  two  feet  high 
and  four  feet  in  diameter.  A  small  stream  of 
water  runs  from  pipes  into  each  tub,  in  which 
some  kind  of  machinery  whirls  round.  The 
dust,  as  it  comes  from  the  furnace,  is  thrown  into 
these  tubs,  and  the  clean  metal  comes  out  below, 
looking  like  quicksilver,  and  floats  in  pans  upon 
a  strong  fluid  solution.  When  the  pans  are  full 
it  is  skimmed  off',  and  then  melted  and  run  into 
bars.  This  process  of  melting  is  called  smelting. 

There  are  different  kinds  of  mines.  The 
quartz-rmuQ,  already  spoken  of,  where  the  metal, 
like  fine  sand,  is  mixed  all  through  hard  rock; 
the  placer-mine,  where  the  metal  is  found  among 
gravel  and  sand;  and  the  sluice-minQ,  where  the 
metal  is  in  the  bed  and  on  the  banks  of  a  stream. 
Of  course,  some  are  very  rich,  while  others  are 
.so  poor  that  it  does  not  pay  to  work  them. 

The  sand  and  gravel  from  the  placer-mine  are 
hauled  to  water,  and  there  the  metal  is  washed 
out.  This  is  called  panning,  and  is  spoken  of  as 
panning  out  "rich"  or  "poor." 

In  the  sluice  or  gulch  mine  the  men  dig  the 
dirt  into  the  water  and  mash  up  the  clods,  throw 
out  the  stones,  etc.,  and  the  dirt  all  washes  down 


324  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

while  the  metal  sinks  to  the  bottom.  When 
there  is  considerable  on  the  bottom,  the  stream 
is  turned  and  the  gold  is  taken  up,  put  in 
troughs,  and  washed  out  as  in  placer-mines. 

There  is  great  gold  and  silver  excitement  in 
the  mountains  all  the  time,  and  many  fortunes 
have  been  made,  while,  on  the  other  hand,  many 
have  been  lost. 

There  are  companies  in  the  mountains  who 
employ  miners  who  wish  to  prospect — and  have 
nothing  to  go  on — upon  these  conditions  :  They 
will  furnish  picks  and  shovels  and  grub- stakes, 
and  if  the  miners  strike  anything  they  are  to 
give  half  to  the  company.  The  expenses  of  the 
company  in  these  bargains  are  not  very  heavy; 
and  many  of  them  have  made  large  fortunes 
from  a  pick  and  shovel  and  the  little  sack  of 
provisions  that  they  hung  upon  the  back  of  an 
old,  crippled  miner. 

It  takes  a  great  deal  of  money  to  work  a  mine 
payingly,  especially  a  quartz-mine ;  and  often  a 
poor  miner  is  compelled  to  sell  a  rich  find  for 
very  little.  Rich  companies  watch  these  oppor- 
tunities, to  take  the  advantage. 

In  the  summer-season,  when  the  snows  are 
melted  down,  parties  of  one,  two,  and  three  per- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  325 

aons,  with  tools  and  provisions  packed  on  burros, 
— and  sometimes  on  cattle, — are  roaming  all 
through  the  mountains, — down  the  slopes  and 
up  the  gorges,  from  the  pine-forests  below  to  the 
barren,  snow-capped  peaks  above, — toiling  in 
the  day-time  and  by  moonlight,  greedy  and 
anxious  for  gold. 

There  are  many  inexperienced  persons  going 
into  the  mountains  every  year  to  prospect ;  and 
though  the  old  miners  have  many  tests  and  a 
great  knowledge  as  to  the  sign  of  ore,  a  greenhorn 
often  makes  a  find  in  his  very  tracks ;  for  the 
old  miner  passes  over,  depending  greatly  on  ^his 
ability  to  tell  almost  at  sight,  while  the  green- 
horn comes  along  turning  every  curious-looking 
stone  and  digging  wherever  anything  glitters. 
The  following  are  a  few  such  instances  :  -In  the 
year  1878  two  brothers  named  Sisson,  living  at 
Granada,  were  at  Pueblo  court  as  witnesses. 
They  testified  in  the  forenoon,  and  taking  a  pick 
and  shovel,  in  the  afternoon,  they  started  out 
among  the  hills  toward  Pike's  Peak  to  prospect. 
When  they  were  four  or  five  miles  from  town 
their  attention  was  attracted  by  the  peculiar 
color  of  the  rocks  and  gravel  on  the  slope  of  a 
little  hill ;  and  though  they  knew  nothing  what- 


326  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

ever  about  mining,  they  thought  there  must  be 
metal  there.  So  with  pick  and  shovel  they  dug- 
away,  and  by  the  moonlight  they  still  worked, 
In  the  morning  they  were  satisfied  that  they  had 
struck  rich  ore,  though  they  had  dug  but  eight 
feet  deep.  One  of  them  stayed  there  and  the 
other  went  to  town  to  report.  That  very  even- 
ing the  boys  were  offered  twenty  thousand  dol- 
lars for  their  find.  This  place  had  been  trod 
over  many  times,  and  the  pick  and  spade  had 
turned  the  soil  on  all  the  surrounding  slopes. 

One  of  the  best  mines  at  Leadville,  also,  was 
discovered  by  a  poor,  ignorant  Swiss,  who  took 
his  tools  on  his  back,  to  make  or  break.  Some 
miners,  while  prospecting  among  the  hills,  were 
attracted  by  fresh  dirt,  and  going  to  the  place 
they  found  the  old  Swiss  sitting  in  the  bottom 
of  a  hole  seven  or  eight  feet  deep,  with  his  head 
upon  his  hands,  and  so  weak  that  he  could 
hardly  stand.  He  had  run  out  of  grub,  and, 
knowing  that  he  had  made  a  find,  he  was  afraid 
to  leave  it  lest  some  other  person  should  get 
possession;  and  thus  he  was  starving  to  death. 
This  proved  to  be  an  immense  fortune  for  the 
old  fellow ;  and,  wiser  than  most  miners,  he  was 
content  to  take  good  and  let  better  alone ;  and 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  327 

he  sailed  for  his  motherland,  where  the  crystal 
lakes  nestle  in  the  Alpine  folds,  there  to  rest  and 
enjoy  his  treasure. 

Finds  are  continually  being  made;  but  the 
fortune  comes  so  suddenly  that  the  miner,  like 
the  gambler,  usually  spends  freely,  and  is  anx- 
ious to  try  his  luck  still  further.  Claims  are 
often  jumped  by  other  parties,  and  some  bitter 
fighting  is  sometimes  done;  for  if  there  is  one 
thing  besides  a  man's  own  life  that  he  will  shed 
his  blood  for,  it  is  the  glittering  gold. 

Miners  receive  from  five  to  seven  dollars  per 
day,  and  furnish  their  own  tools.  It  is  certainly 
hard  and  dangerous  work  to  dig  in  the  mine  so 
far  below,  and  thus  seeing  but  little  sunlight  the 
whole  season  through;  but,  strange  to  say,  there 
are  men  who  have  crippled  and  ruined  themselves 
in  the  dark  gold-dens,  and  though  hobbling  on 
crutches  are  not  yet  content  to  live  anywhere 
but  where  the  pick  rings  against  the  rocks,  and 
the  exciting  cry  of  gold  is  heard. 

Whenever  the  cry  of  a  rich  find  is  raised,  it 
goes  like  wild-fire  through  the  mountain-towns, 
and  often  far  out,  and  people  rush  like  maniacs 
to  the  scene — some  to  mine,  some  to  haul,  etc. 
Whether  the  alarm  is  true  or  false,  num.- 


328  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

bers  arrive  at  the  scene.  There  are  persons 
having  good  teams  watching  these  breaks,  and 
as  soon  as  the  first  cry  is  raised  they  load  their 
wagons  with  tobaccos,  liquors,  flour,  feed,  shoes, 
blankets,  etc.,  etc.,  and  hastening  to  the  ground 
they  cut  down  some  pines  and  stake  off  a  claim, 
and  build  a  little  store-house.  They  get  their 
own  prices  for  goods;  and  should  the  cry  be/atee, 
he  can  easily  sell  out  to  persons  who  come  to  see; 
but  should  the  find  be  rich,  he  has  his  store-house 
where  he  can  make  his  fortune.  Besides,  the  vein 
might  run  under  his  very  claim.  Persons  are 
making  fortunes  at  this  to-day  ;  and  Leadville  is 
an  example.  Persons  who  staked  off  their  little 
claims  among  the  trees  on  the  mountain-side 
when  the  discovery  was  first  made,  can  to-day 
count  their  wealth  in  large  pieces  of  silver  and 
gold. 

Park  City  is  forty  miles  from  Salt  Lake ;  and 
anxious  to  see  the  great  historical  valley,  as  well 
as  the  home  of  a  people  who  are  the  world's 
curiosit}7,  we  pulled  out  in  that  direction. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  329 


CHAPTER   III. 

View  of  Salt  Lake  Valley  and  City — Tabernacle — History  of 
the  Mormons — Joe  Smith — Came  to  Kirtland,  Ohio — Brig- 
ham  Young  Converted— Located  at  Independence,  Mis- 
souri—Located at  Nauvoo,  Illinois— Joe  and  Hiram  Smith 
Killed— Emigrated  to  Council  Blufts— Came  to  Salt  Lake- 
Trouble  with  the  Government— Mormon  Theology. 

Winding  down  a  deep  gulch,  through  which 
runs  a  mountain-stream,  we  came  out  upon  the 
plateau  that  overlooks  the  great  Salt  Lake  Val- 
ley from  the  south.  It  is  a  scene  of  rare  natural 
beauty.  Beyond  and  across,  the  plain  spreads  out 
from  five  to  ten  miles,  with  pretty  farm-houses 
and  herds  of  cattle.  To  the  north  it  was  lost  in 
the  dim  distance, — the  whole  flat  almost  as  a 
floor  and  sparkling  with  irrigating  canals,  and 
walled  upon  either  side  by  hills  that  mount  to 
the  snow-line,  and  out  from  which  flow  the  cool, 
sparkling  waters  that  make  this  once-desert  val- 
ley blossom  under  the  hand  of  industry. 

The  city,  but  a  short  way  to  the  north,  is  reg- 
ularly and  handsomely  laid  out,  with  many  fine 
buildings,  and  is  filled  with  thick  gardens  of 


330  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

trees  and  flowers  that  give  it  a  fairy-land  aspect. 
No  internal  city  of  the  continent  lies  in  such  a 
field  of  beauty. 

Water  ie  conveyed  from  a  mountain-stream 
down  to  the  city  by  a  canal ;  and  bright,  spark- 
ling pools  course  freely  and  constantly  down  its 
paved  gutters  upon  either  side  of  every  street, 
keeping  the  shade-trees  alive  and  growing,  sup- 
plying drink  for  animals  and  water  for  house- 
hold purposes,  and  delightfully  cooling  the  sum- 
mer-air. 

The  trees,  at  the  proper  season,  are  almost  al- 
ways loaded  with  the  finest  fruit;  and  the  soil  is 
favorable  to  the  small  grains.  Forty  and  fifty 
bushels  of  wheat  to  the  acre  is  an  ordinary  crop; 
and  it  is  said  that  over  ninety  bushels  have  been 
raised. 

~No  one  seems  poor.  No  beggar  is  seen  in  the 
streets.  No  prostitute  lives  here ;  and  there  are 
but  few  saloons  in  town.  When  a  drunken  man 
is  seen,  he  is  almost  invariably  a  miner  or  a  sol- 
dier. The  people  are  far  more  civil  and  quiet 
than  is  usual  in  these  western  parts. 

Great  Salt  Lake  is  a  very  great  curiosity.  It 
is  about  one  hundred  and  forty  miles  long  and 
from  seventy  to  eighty  wide,  and  is  a  vast  col- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  331 

lection  of  brine.  The  water  seems  to  be  satu- 
rated with  salt  to  its  utmost  capacity  of  holding 
it  in  solution,  indicating  the  neighborhood  of 
great  deposits  of  mineral  salt.  Where  the  wind 
dashes  the  water  upon  the  beach  the  salt  collects 
in  such  quantities  as  to  be  conveniently  shoveled 
into  carts  for  domestic  use.  It  is  also  procured 
by  evaporation — five  bucketfuls  of  water  leaving 
one  of  salt. 

The  lake  encompasses  several  islands,  with 
high,  mountainous  peaks,  among  the  largest 
of  which  is  Church  Island,  situated  so  near  the 
eastern  shore  as  to  be  accessible  for  grazing  pur- 
poses, for  which  it  is  extensively  used.  The  air 
is  wonderfully  pure  and  bright.  Rain  seldom 
falls  in  the  valley,  though  storms  occur  in  the 
mountains  almost  daily.  A  cloud  comes  up  in 
the  western  hills,  rolls  along  the  crest  and  threat- 
ens the  city  with  a  deluge,  but  then  breaks 
into  wind  and  showers,  and  seems  to  run  along 
the  hill-tops  and  sail  away  eastward  into  the 
snowy  range. 

While  delighted  to  find  the  people  all  appar- 
ently so  well  circumstanced,  we  were  also  amused 
at  their  many  curious  peculiarities.  There  is 
one  block  in  the  city  called  "  Temple  Block." 


332   •  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

This  is  surrounded  by  a  high  and  powerful  stone 
wall.  Inside  of  this  wall  stands  the  mighty  gran- 
ite temple  (yet  unfinished),  and  also  the  taberna- 
cle. The  tabernacle  is  built  of  adobes  made  from 
the  blue  clay  from  the  mountain-foot.  It  is  round, 
.about  eighty  feet  in  diameter,  with  walls  about 
thirty  feet  high.  It  is  splendidly  seated,  and 
has  a  large  gallery.  There  are  large  double 
doors  all  around,  leaving  columns  of  wall  about 
ten  feet  between  the  doors.  In  warm  weather 
these  doors  are  all  thrown  open,  and  the  building 
is  a  cool,  delightful  place.  At  one  end  stands 
the  next  to  the  largest  pipe-organ  in  the  world ; 
next  is  a  beautiful  platform,  which  the  band  and 
'Choir  of  about  seventy-five  persons  occupy;  then 
comes  the  large,  decorated,  and  comfortable 
chair  in  which  the  president  sits ;  then  the  long 
sofa  for  the  twelve  apostles;  then  the  pulpit  for 
the  ministers  ;  and  then  comes  the  congregation, 
who  usually  throng  the  house.  The  choir  is 
•composed  of  cultured  and  beautiful  singers ;  and 
sweeter  music  than  I  heard  in  that  old  tabernacle 
never  met  my  ears.  After  the  preaching  is  done 
and  the  songs  are  sung,  the  president  arises  and 
prophesies,  and  the  apostles  cry  out,  "  Amen." 
"The  fictitious  Mormon  Bible  that  they  claim  was 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  333 

found  by  Joe  Smith  in   Mormon   Hill  has  been 
changed  and  modified  from  time  to  time,  and  to- 
day they  preach  from  nearly  the  same  Bible  aa 
ours.     They  have  services  every  Sabbath ;  and  all 
finding  it  possible,  from  the  tottering  infant  to- 
the  aged  and  gray,  gather  in  to  hear  the   word 
and  listen  to  the  prophecies.     They  take  sacra- 
ment every  Sabbath;  but  water  is  used  instead  of 
wine.     I  was  in  one  of  their  thronged  congrega- 
tions when  the  cup  went  around,  and  when  it 
reached  me  my  delight  at  the  thought  of  getting 
a  good  big  swallow  of  old  Mormon  wine  was 
blighted  by  a  cup  of  something  that  I  had  been 
drinking  ever  since  I  was  a  drinker.     Neverthe- 
less, it  went  pretty  well  in  warm  weather.     We 
happened  to  be  there  when  the   body  of  Rev. 
Joseph  Stanley — a  Mormon  missionary  who  was 
killed  in  Georgia — arrived  for  interment,  and  we 
had  the  pleasure  of  hearing  the  services.     The 
sixth  chapter  of  the  Revelation  of  St.  John  was 
read,  and  the  text  was  taken  from  the  thirty- 
fourth  verse  of  the  Uventy-third  chapter  of  St. 
Matthew.     The  remarks  were  all  tinged  with 
vindication  ;  and  the  prophet  indulged  freely  in 
threatening  wrath  upon  their  opposers.     There 
were  about  fourteen  thousand  people  present, 


334  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 


the  strong  language  of  the  dignitaries  ex- 
cited them  to  such  a  degree  that  I  tried  to  look 
just  as  much  like  a  Mormon  as  possible. 

There  is  a  large  church-building  in  which  to 
store  away  the  property  belonging  to  the  church  ; 
.and  from  the  poorest  maiden  at  the  wash-tub  to 
the  wealthiest  merchant  of  the  city,  one  tenth  of 
•everything  that  is  made  must  be  surrendered  to 
the  church.  It  is  amusing  to  see  how  cheerfully 
the  farmers  trot  off  to  the  store-house  with  every 
tenth  bushel  of  apples,  or  load  of  hay,  or  grain. 
This  store  is  managed  and  run  by  the  dignitaries, 
who  dispose  of  the  grains  and  fruits,  and  handle 
the  silver  and  gold.  And  not  being  compelled 
to  ever  produce  a  balance-sheet,  nor  any  account 
whatever,  they  have  the  funds  entirely  in  their 
own  lingers;  and  hence  their  fine  mansions  and 
flowery  beds  of  ease.  The  poor  ignorant  dupes 
submit  to  all  this,  and  appear  to  think  that  they 
are  paving  their  way  into  heaven  by  lavishing 
luxuries  upon  their  priesthood. 

At  the  other  end  of  the  valley  stands  the  city 
of  Ogden,  which  is  about  half  as  large  as  Salt 
Lake  City,  and  not  nearly  so  beautiful.  About 
one  fifth  of  the  persons  here  are  not  Mormons, 
while  at  the  other  end  there  are  very  few  who 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  335 

do  not  nestle  in  the  folds  of  the  church.  The 
Central  Pacific  Railroad  passes  through  Ogden, 
and  sends  off  a  branch  called  the  Utah  Central 
down  to  Salt  Lake  City. 

The  lake  lies  several  miles  from  the  city,  and 
there  are  several  line  bathing-houses  on  its 
shores.  These  are  reached  by  narrow-gauge 
railroads ;  and  during  the  bathing-season  great 
loads  of  gleeful  boys  and  girls  can  be  seen  most 
every  evening  riding  down  to  the  beach  to  bathe. 

The  rise  of  Mormondom  has  been  so  miracu- 
lous, and  their  superstitions  are  so  curious  and 
numerous,  that  a  brief  sketch  of  their  career 
from  the  finding  of  the  Bible  by  Joe  Smith,  to- 
gether with  a  part  of  their  theology,  may  be  in 
place  here,  and  will  doubtless  be  interesting  to 
many  of  my  readers.  The  following  is  what, 
with  care  and  pains,  I  have  been  able  to  collect 
from  interviews,  records,  and  other  sources  : 

Joe  Smith,  jr.,  the  putative  father  of  Mormon- 
ism  and  the  Church  of  Latter-day  Saints,  was 
born  in  Sharon,  Windsor  County,  Vermont,  De- 
cember 13,  1805.  When  he  was  seventeen  years 
old  he  found  a  curious  stone  in  the  dirt  thrown 
from  a  well.  It  was  the  shape  of  a  child's  foot,  of 
a  whitish,  glassy  appearance,  though  opaque,  and 


336 


resembling  quartz.  He  thought  a  great  deal  of 
the  stone,  and  asserted  the  gift  and  power  with 
it  at  his  eyes  of  revealing  things  past  and  things 
to  come.  The  discoveries  soon  became  too  daz- 
zling for  his  eyes  in  daylight,  and  he  had  to 
shade  his  vision  by  looking  at  the  stone  in  his 
hat.  There  are  fools  in  all  ages;  and  Joe  had 
his  believers,  who  often  came  to  him  to  imd  out 
where  lost  or  stolen  property  was.  He  always 
charged;  and  though  there  was  no  reality  in  his 
pretentions,  he  succeeded  in  keeping  the  eyes  of 
certain  dupes  covered.  He  would  tell  them 
where  there  was  a  large  chest  of  money  buried, 
and  get  them  to  digging,  and  he  would  stand  by 
with  his  stone ;  but  every  time,  just  as  they  were 
almost  to  the  treasure,  the  enchantment  would 
be  broken  by  some  one  speaking,  or  otherwise, 
and  though  he  never  found  any  money,  they  still 
believed.  He  made  his  dupes  believe  that  while 
he  was  engaged  in  secret  prayer  in  the  wilder- 
ness an  angel  appeared  and  told  him  that  all  his 
sins  had  been  forgiven,  and  proclaiming  further 
that  all  the  religious  denominations  were  believ- 
ing false  doctrines ;  that  none  of  them  were  ac- 
ceptable of  God  as  of  his  church  and  kingdom ; 
and  also  promising  him  that  the  true  doctrine 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  357 

and  fullness  of  the  gospel  should  at  some  future 
time  be  revealed  to  him.  He  was  told  that  the 
American  Indians  were  a  remnant  of  the  Israel- 
ites; that  their  prophetic  records  regarding 
the  last  days  were  buried  at  a  certain  spot; 
that  this  spot  was  made  known  him,  and  him 
only,  nnd  that  if  he  kept  faithful  he  should  be 
the  chosen  prophet  to  translate  them  to  the 
world.  A  short  time  afterward  he  had  another 
astonishing  vision  ;  and  he  was  commanded,  upon 
a  secretly-fixed  day  and  hour,  to  go  alone  to  a  cer- 
tain spot  revealed  to  him  by  an  angel,  and  there 
take  out  of  the  earth  a  metallic  book  of  great 
antiquity,  which  was  of  immortal  importance 
to  the  world,  and  which  he  said  was  a  record 
of  mystic  letters  of  the  long-lost  tribes  of 
Israel;  that  no  human  being  besides  himself 
could  see  it  and  live,  and  that  the  power  to  trans- 
late it  to  the  nations  of  the  earth  was  given 
to  him  only  as  the  chosen  servant  of  God. 

Smith's  dupes  and  relations  gave  the  report  a 
wide  circulation ;  and  accordingly,  when  the 
appointed  hour  came,  assuming  his  practical  air 
of  mystery,  he  took  in  his  hand  his  money-dig- 
ging spade  and  a  large  napkin,  and  went  off 
alone  into  the  solitude  of  the  forest.  In  three 

22 


388  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

hours  he  returned  with  his  sacred  charge  con- 
cealed within  the  folds  of  the  napkin.  He 
again  warned  his  friends  of  the  fatal  consequen- 
ces of  looking  at  it,  and  a  strong  chest  was  pro- 
cured and  the  charge  kept  under  lock  and  key. 
He  said  that  as  he  was  digging  for  the  treasure, 
he  was  confronted  by  ten  thousand  devils,  gath- 
ered there  with  their  menacing,  sulphurous 
flame  and  smoke,  to  deter  him  from  his  purpose. 
The  sacred  treasure  was  never  seen  by  morjtal 
eyes  save  those  of  the  anointed. 

About  the  year  1826  it  became  expedient  to 
have  a  new  revelation.  The  veritable  existence 
of  the  book  was  certified  to  by  eleven  witnesses 
of  Smith's  own  choosing;  and  wonderful  stories 
and  predictions  followed  in  regard  to  the  future 
light  and  destiny  of  the  world.  The  spot  from 
whence  the  book  is  said  to  have  been  taken  is 
on  the  summit  of  a  hill  at  Manchester,  New 
York,  which  has  ever  since  been  called  Mormon 
Hill.  The  book,  after  the  new  revelation,  was 
represented  by  Smith  and  his  echoes  as  consist- 
ing of  metallic  leaves  or  plates  resembling  gold, 
bound  together  by  three  rings  running  through 
one  edge  of  them  and  opening  like  a  book. 
Smith  translated  the  book  and  a  certain  school- 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  339 

master  did  the  writing;  and  the  new  Bible  went 
to  print  in  the  summer  of  1830. 

Here  was  the  organization  of  the  first  Mor- 
anon  Church.  Though  great  efforts  and  imposi- 
tions had  been  practiced  upon  the  people,  the 
scheme  was  generally  ridiculed  and  the  converts 
were  few  arid  of  the  most  ignorant  of  the  race ; 
and  Smith  coming  to  realize  that  a  prophet  was 
without  honor  in  his  own  country,  he,  with  his 
most  fanatic  followers,  began  to  talk  of  going  on 
.a  mission  into  the  western  country  to  convert 
the-  Lamanites  (meaning  the  Indians).  In  the 
year  1830  or  1831  they  started  on  their  western 
expedition,  stopping  at  Mentor,  Ohio,  where 
lived  a  few  Mormon  converts. 

JSTear  this  place  is  Kirtland,  where  they  began 
•a  series  of  meetings ;  and  one  hundred  persons 
were  added  to  the  fold  in  a  short  time.  Kirt- 
land,  from  about  this  period,  became  the  head- 
quarters of  the  Mormons,  where  their  church 
and  colony  were  thoroughly  organized  and  tem- 
porarily established. 

The  next  interest  was  to  disseminate  to  the 
people  the  newly-revealed  latter-day  religion. 
The  system  of  missionary  labor  was  put  in  active 
requisition.  The  cause  was  pressed  with  zeal 


340 


and  effect.  The  trumpet  of  "the  true  gospel'7 
was  sounded  to  the  gentiles.  The  superstitious 
and  ignorant  were  captivated,  and  respectable 
men  and  women  quaked  amid  the  scenes.  Con- 
versions were  multiplied  and  multitudes  rushed 
into  the  new  Zion  as  if  believing  the  last  days 
were  at  hand  in  sober  verity.  Thus  was  the 
Mormon  Church  matured  and  the  colony  of  the 
saints  speedily  enlarged. 

At  length,  finding  himself  surrounded  and 
sustained  by  large  and  increasing  numbers, — in- 
cluding some  persons  of  ample  pecuniary  means, 
— Smith  tried  a  bold  venture  upon  their  credu- 
lity in  his  own  behalf.  This  was  a  revelation 
which  he  communicated  to  his  disciples,  to  the 
effect  that  they  should  "immediately  build  a 
house  for  the  prophet,  in  which  he  might  live 
and  translate."  It  was  in  1832  or  1833  ;  and  the 
command  was  cheerfully  accepted  and  obeyed. 

Another  revelation,  alike  successful,  shortly 
followed,  commanding  that  "  my  chosen  Joseph 
shall  not  labor  for  a  living."  Though  the  im- 
postor was  scorned  by  intelligent  people,  his  fol- 
lowers regarded  him  as  almost  deserving  of  ado- 
ration ;  and  he  was  enabled  to  revel  in  whatever 
luxury  was  most  agreeable  to  his  vulgar  taste 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  341 

and  ambition.  His  power  was  now  next  to  om- 
nipotent in  Morniondom. 

Brigliam  Young  was  converted  and  joined 
the  Mormons  at  Kirtland  in  the  year  1833. 
Like  Smith,  he  was  a  native  of  Vermont,  being 
his  senior  by  four  years.  Brigham  was  shrewd, 
bold,  and  resolute,  possessing  an  almost  intuitive 
knowledge  of  men.  He  soon  attracted  the  at- 
tention of  his  brethren,  whom  he  swayed  by  his 
strong,  electric  will,  and  was  recognized  as  a 
man  born  to  rule.  He  was  soon  ordained  one 
of  the  quorum  of  twelve  apostles  that  had  been 
organized.  He  preached  with  success ;  and 
from  that  day  till  his  death  his  influence  and 
power  among  the  Mormons  was  resistless. 

Smith  was  constantly  receiving  new  revela- 
tions ;  and  at  length  he  discovered  that  those 
who  had  property  were  to  pay  all  their  surplus 
money  into  the  hands  of  the  bishop  for  the 
building  of  Zion,  for  the  benefit  of  the  priest- 
hood, and  to  pay  the  debts  of  the  presidency  of 
the  church.  "And  ever  after  those  who  shall 
thus  tithe  shall  pay  one  tenth  of  all  their  inter- 
ests annually ;  and  this  shall  be  a  standing  law 
unto  them  forever  for  my  holy  priesthood,  saith 
the  Lord."  This  revelation  was  also  received 


342  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and  cheerfully  obeyed.  A  temple  was  erected  at 
Kirtland  at  a  cost  of  fifty  thousand  dollars,  by 
contributions  in  money  and  labor  obtained  from 
the  saints  through  the  resistless  power  of 
Smith's  revelation  process. 

Mormonism,  however,  became  distasteful  to- 
the  unconverted  people  of  Ohio,  and  particularly 
disgusting  to  the  inhabitants  near  Kirtland, 
People  were  familiar  with  the  source  and  history 
of  the  golden-bible  scheme,  and  scorned  the  im- 
postor Smith  beyond  public  tolerance.  Smith 
now  saw  the  necessity  of  another  shift,  and 
Jackson  County,  Missouri,  was  chosen  for  the- 
new  abode.  A  large  tract  of  land  was  pur- 
chased here,  and  a  town-site  was  laid  out  and 
called  Independence.  A  division  of  the  Mor- 
mons moved  here,  and  the  work  of  up- building 
was  vigorously  prosecuted  in  the  year  1834.  In 
1836  the  Mormon  population  consisted  of  about 
fifteen  hundred,  and  the  town  was  well  advanced 
and  business  and  printing-houses  were  estab- 
lished. 

Trouble  arose  here  again  with  the  citizens 
outside  of  the  church,  and  the  saints  were  ac- 
cused of  stealing  cattle  and  other  property  and 
of  being  connected  with  counterfeiting  gangs 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  343 

and  various  other  criminal  offenses.  A  meeting 
of  the  surrounding  citizens  was  called  to  con- 
sider the  subject  of  ridding  themselves  of  the 
source  of  their  annoyance,  and  it  was  resolved 
to  expel  the  Mormons  from  the  state.  Riotous 
scenes  followed,  and  several  persons  were  killed. 
The  state  militia  was  called  out.  Smith  armed 
his  followers  and  determined  to  resist  any  repri- 
mand whatever.  But  they  were  too  weak  ;  and 
the  Prophet  Joseph  and  his  brother  Hiram,  with 
some  forty  others  of  the  party,  were  imprisoned 
in  the  county  jail.  This  ended  the  struggle; 
and  the  Mormons  finally  agreed  with  the  state 
authorities  that  they  would  permanently  leave 
the  state. 

General  Clark,  commanding  the  militia  in 
this  affair,  dispatched  to  Governor  Boggs,  in 
1838,  as  follows:  "There  is  no'crime,  from  trea- 
son down  to  petit  larceny,  but  these  people,  or  a 
majority  of  them,  have  been  guilty  of;  all,  too, 
under  the  counsel  of  Joe  Smith,  jr.,  the  prophet. 
They  have  societies  formed  under  the  most 
binding  covenants  and  horrid  oaths  to  plunder, 
burn,  and  murder,  and  divide  the  spoils  for  the 
use  of  the  church." 

The  governor  answered  that  the  ringleaders 
of  the  rebellion  should  be  made  an  example  of; 


314  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and,  if  necessary  to  the  public  peace,  the  Mor- 
mons should  be  exterminated  or  expelled  from 
the  state. 

The  Mormons  could  no  longer  withstand  the 
tide  of  opposition,  and  they  concluded  to  quit 
Missouri  with  all  haste.  Their  condition  was 
now  equal  to  the  scattered  tribes  of  their  Baby- 
lonish ancestors,  and  before  the  close  of  the  year 
1839  they  had  all  left  Missouri, — some  returning 
to  Ohio;  but  the  body,  crossing  the  river  into 
Illinois,  established  themselves  in  Hancock 
County,  at  a  place  which  they  called  Nauvoo. 
In  1840  Nauvoo  became  the  chief  seat  of  Mor- 
monism;  and  they  were  generally  welcomed  by 
the  people  of  the  surrounding  country  as  perse- 
cuted exiles.  Smith,  seeing  the  sympathy  in 
their  behalf,  took  advantage  of  the  situation  and 
urged  his  doctrine;  and  vast  numbers  were  con- 
verted. 

Meantime  Young  and  others  had  been  sent  as 
foreign  missionaries  to  spread  the  gospel,  and 
had  received  vivid  encouragement  in  the  East. 
In  the  year  1841  Young  shipped  several  hun- 
dred of  the  faithful  from  Liverpool  to  New 
York,  for  the  promised  land ;  and  organizations 
were  left  in  England,  Scotland,  and  Wales. 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  345 

Nauvoo  sprung  np ;  Mormonism  was  more 
than  itself  again  ;  and  things  went  on  smoothly. 
Smith  had  another  vision,  and  was  told  that  the 
saints  should  build  for  him  a  fine  house.  This 
command,  like  all  other  communications  from 
the  same  source,  was  accepted  as  of  heavenly 
authenticity.  By  his  tithing  process  he  had 
amassed  a  fortune  estimated  at  a  million  of  dol- 
lars; and  he  now  reveled  in  luxury,  played  tlie 
gentleman,  weighed  two  hundred  and  twenty 
pounds,  had  forty  wives,  and  his  children  could 
oot  be  enumerated  with  any  accuracy. 

The  revelation  in  favor  of  polygamy,  however, 
was  for  years  withheld  as  a  secret  from  all  but 
the  dignitaries  of  the  church.  This  interpola- 
tion of  polygamy  into  what  had  been  received 
by  the  disciples  of  Mormonism  as  their  estab- 
lished religious  system  caused  great  embarrass- 
ment in  the  church — for  it  was  repugnant  to  the 
teachings  of  Smith's  own  Bible;  and  being  also 
by  the  law  of  Illinois  declared  bigamy,  and 
punishable  by  heavy  fine  and  imprisonment  in 
the  penitentiary,  the  trouble  was  still  aug- 
mented. The  Illinois  people  were  intolerant 
and  restive  in  view  of  the  vices  and  criminali- 
ties in  various  forms  ascribed  to  the  latter-day 


346  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

hypocrites.  They  were  necessarily  the  sources 
of  ill  feeling  and  bitter  hate  between  the  com- 
munities, and  from  this  time  forward  there  was 
found  no  peace  for  the  wicked.  Charges  of 
licentiousness,  adultery,  seduction,  theft,  dishon- 
esty, and  crimes  in  greater  variety  than  ever 
were  brought  against  the  doomed  leaders  and 
their  bigoted  followers.  Slander  suits  were 
commenced  on  one  side  and  criminal  proceed- 
ings were  instituted  on  the  other;  and  litigation 
followed  litigation  pro  and  con. 

Attempts  to  arrest  Smith  and  other  dignitaries 
of  the  church  were  resisted  by  military  power. 
The  charge  of  treason  was  brought  against  the 
offending  saints.  Mormon  defense  against  the 
Illinois  authority  was  persisted  in,  and  General 
Joe  Smith,  and  his  brother  Hiram,  at  the  head 
of  the  Nauvoo  legion,  opposed  the  state  militia 
which  had  been  called  out  to  enforce  obedience 
to  the  law.  The  aspect  was  threatening;  and 
the  governor,  anxious  to  avoid  the  terrible 
slaughter  impending,  proposed  to  the  Smiths  a 
surrender  as  prisoners  to  the  sheriff  and  the 
disbandment  of  the  legion,  as  their  only  course 
of  safety  for  their  own  lives  and  for  their  city. 
This  proposal  was  at  length  acceded  to — the 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  34T 

governor  promising  them  protection  against 
violence  from  the  excited  populace  on  their  way 
to  the  jail  and  during  their  imprisonment.  Ac- 
cordingly, the  legal  arrests  were  made;  and  the 
Smiths,  with  Elder  John  Taylor  and  Dr.  Rich- 
ards, were  conveyed  to  the  Carthage  jail.  Pur- 
suant to  the  governor's  stipulation,  the  jail  was 
placed  under  a  military  guard  to  protect  the 
prisoners  against  the  known  existence  of  an 
avengeful  feeling,  particularly  existing  on  the 
part  of  those  whose  domestic  sanctums  were  al- 
leged to  have  been  invaded  by  the  cruel  doctrine 
of  polygamy.  The  prisoners  were  in  the  jail 
but  a  few  days  when  the  guard  was  reduced  by 
desertion,  and  in  the  afternoon  of  the  24th  of 
June,  1844,  the  remnant  of  the  guard  were  over- 
powered by  a  mob  two  hundred  disguised  and 
armed  men,  bent  upon  summary  vengeance  for 
their  wrongs.  The  doors  were  burst  open,  the 
inmates  were  fired  upon,  and  the  Smiths  were 
killed,  Elder  Taylor  severely  wounded,  and  Dr. 
Richards  escaped  to  tell  the  tale. 

Great  excitement  prevailed,  and  Nauvoo  was 
in  commotion.  The  governor  hastened  to  the 
scene,  and  measures  were  taken  to  prevent  a 
general  attack.  He  was  incensed  because  the- 


348  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

pledge  he  gave  to  the  prisoners  had  been  violated, 
.and  told  the  Mormons  to  defend  themselves  in 
the  best  way  until  he  could  send  them  protec- 
tion. But  farther  violence  was  happily  averted. 
The  immediate  effect  upon  the  Mormons  of  this 
.appalling  assassination,  was  to  throw  a  halo  of 
glory  around  his  character  as  a  martyr  who  had 
sealed  with  his  blood  the  truth  of  his  divine 
pretensions.  The  soil  of  Mormonism  had  been 
fertilized  by  the  blood  of  the  Smiths,  and  a 
••church  founded  in  falsehood  and  hypocrisy  has 
been  strengthened,  if  not  perpetuated,  by  its 
supporting  influence.  Indeed,  it  is  rational  to 
believe  that  but  for  the  opportunity  thus  aftbrd- 
to  fasten  in  enslaved,  superstitious  minds  the 
impression  of  " martyrdom"  of  their  patron 
saint,  Mormonism  would  ere  this  have  had  its 
everlasting  fall. 

Brigham  Young  was  ambitious  and  very 
shrewd ;  and  standing  very  high  in  the  estima- 
tion of  his  people,  he  was  now  unanimously 
elected  to  the  presidency  of  the  church,  and 
maintained  a  despotic  sway.  In  the  course  of  a 
year  or  two,  the  people  of  Illinois  determined  to 
drive  the  whole  tribe  from  the  state;  and  seeing 
:the  necessity,  Young  and  his  counsel  decided  to 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  349 

send  a  company  to  seek  a  new  home  in  the  West, 
The  emigration  commenced  in  February,  1846, 
and  in  August  they  arrived  at  a  selected  place 
upon  the  unoccupied  prairies  near  Council 
Bluffs.  Here  they  remained  in  tents  during  the 
next  winter.  Here  the  news  of  the  Mexican 
War  reached  them;  and  Young  apprehending- 
ultimate  conflict  with  the  Mexican  authorities,, 
deemed  it  essential  to  be  on  good  terms  with  the 
United  States.  Quick  to  perceive  his  opportunity,, 
he  sent  an  agent  to  Washington  to  tender  a  bat- 
talion to  the  Government.  It  was  accepted,  and 
Young  received  twenty  thousand  dollars  from 
the  Government  for  his  services. 

Young,  with  a  company  of  followers,  then 
went  upon  another  exploring  expedition  ;  and  se- 
lecting Salt  Lake  valley  for  the  location  of  their 
future  Zion,  the  saints  were  all  informed,  and  in 
the  year  1847  four  thousand  Mormons  arrived 
in  the  valley. 

Young  had  not  yet  been  accepted  by  the 
church  as  prophet,  seer,  and  revelator,  in  the  full 
celestial  sense,  as  was  the  martyr  Smith  ;  and  as- 
soon  as  re-organization  was  secured,  he  called  a 
meeting  to  consider  the  matter.  He  arose  and 
solemnly  professed  communication  with  the 


350 

.spirit  of  Prophet  Joseph;  and  going  through 
with  a  series  of  impressive  mimicries  of  his 
predecessor  in  his  peculiar  style  of  adroitness,  he 
completely  convinced  his  audience,  and  ever 
since  this  successful  experiment  it  is  believed 
that  the  mantle  of  Joseph  fell  upon  Brigham; 
and  by  a  vote  he  was  declared  the  "  Prophet  of 
the  Lord." 

Utah  Territory  was  organized  by  act  of  Con- 
gress in  the  year  1850,  and  Young  received  the 
United  States  appointment  of  territorial  gov- 
ernor for  Utah.  Large  accessions  of  emigrants, 
.sent  forward  by  missionaries,  rapidly  increased 
the  Mormon  numbers  in  Salt  Lake ;  and  in  the 
jear  1853,  the  corner-stone  of  the  temple  at  Salt 
Lake  City  was  laid.  About  two  thousand  people 
were  present,  and  the  ceremonies  were  in  the 
highest  style  of  Mormon  grandeur.  Governor 
Young  made  the  leading  address  on  the  occasion, 
.saying  that  the  saints  were  about  to  make  their 
third  attempt  to  build  a  temple  to  the  Lord,  and 
.asking  his  followers  to  pay  their  tithes  in  cheer- 
ful promptitude,  promising  God's  blessing  on 
them  who  do  his  will.  He  declared  that  the 
very  ground  where  he  stood  had  been  revealed 
to  him  for  seven  years  past  as  the  place  where 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  351 

the  temple  should  stand.  The  building  is  an 
immense  structure,  and  is  calculated  to  seat 
eighteen  thousand  people.  It  is  being  built  of 
granite  taken  from  the  mountain  at  the  side  of 
the  valley,  and  is  yet  unfinished.  It  is  a  mag- 
nificent structure,  of  which  the  saints  are  very 
proud. 

Soon  anti-Mormons  began  to  settle  in  the  val- 
leys east  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  for  the  purposes 
of  mining  and  stock-raising;  and  the  Mormons 
becoming  alarmed,  determined  to  expel  them 
vi  et  armis.  Both  parties  armed  and  fortified 
themselves;  but  the  Mormons  soon  saw  their 
folly  and  gave  up  the  scheme.  Trouble  is, 
however,  continually  brewing  between  the  Mor- 
mons and  anti-Mormons  wherever  they  meet; 
and  that  they  will  never  and  can  never  live  to- 
gether in  peace  under  one  government  is  inevi- 
table. The  conflict  that  took  place  between  them 
in  Ohio,  Missouri,  Illinois,  and  Iowa,  and  is  now 
going  on  in  Utah,  ought  to  be  enough  to  con- 
vince any  intelligent  man  of  this  fact.  The 
Mormons  themselves  acknowledge  it ;  and  so 
long  as  they  adhere  to  their  present  belief, — that 
an  absolute  theocracy  is  the  only  government 
under  which  they  can  and  should  live, — they 


352  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

never  will  be  loyal  to  our  government  and 
countrymen ;  and  hence  their  hostility  to  our 
institutions  and  people,  and  their  inflexible  de- 
votion to  their  own.  Their  settlements  lie  in 
the  great  pathway  which  leads  to  the  Pacific 
country,  and  they  have  been  standing  a  lion  in 
the  path, — encouraging  the  savages,  if  not  aiding 
them,  in  immigrant  massacres.  The  Mormons 
had  become  so  insolent  that  it  was  thought  best 
in  1857  to  send  troops  to  Utah  with  the  civil 
officers  appointed  to  that  territory. 

In  1863,  Stephen  II.  Harding  was  appointed 
governor  of  Utah.  Congress  passed  an  act  to 
punish  and  prevent  the  practice  of  polygamy  in 
the  territories;  and  they,  considering  the  act 
unconstitutional,  refused  to  obey  it  as  law. 
Governor  Harding  declaring  in  favor  of  the  act, 
the  pent-up  fires  of  saintly  wrath  now  broke 
forth.  A  meeting  was  again  called,  and  in  his 
enthusiastic  way  Young  denounced  Governor 
Harding  as  a  black-hearted  abolitionist,  and 
asking  his  people  if  they  would  recognize  him 
as  their  governor.  And  being  answered  no,  that 
he  was  their  governor,  he  said,  "Yes,  I  am  your 
governor ;  and  if  he  attempt  to  interfere  in  my 
business,  woe,  woe  be  unto  him."  A  committee 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  353 

was  appointed  to  wait  upon  the  governor  and 
request  him  to  resign  his  office  and  leave  the 
territory.  In  reply,  Harding  said  that  as  this 
was  a  land  of  prophecy,  he  too  would  prophesy. 
"If,  while  in  the  discharge  of  my  duties,  one 
drop  of  my  blood  be  shed  by  your  ministers  of 
vengeance,  it  will  be  avenged;  and  not  one  stone 
nor  adobe  in  this  city  will  be  left  upon  another. 
I  have  now  done,  and  you  understand  me." 

No  acts  of  violence  followed,  and  terms  of 
mutual  conciliation  were  effected.  This  is  Utah, 
and  these  are  the  Mormons.  From  year  to  year 
there  is  trouble ;  and  at  the  present — Brigham 
Young  having  died  several  years  ago — there  is 
contention  between  the  Government  and  the 
Kauvoo  legion. 

The  theology  of  the  saints  is  subject  to 
change,  by  revelation,  at  the  caprice  of  the 
prophet.  The  following  is  part  of  what  they 
believe:  There  are  many  gods  of  both  sexes; 
but  to  us  there  is  but  one  God — the  Father  of 
mankind  and  Creator  of  the  earth.  God  is  in 
the  form  of  man.  He  has  a  body  of  spiritual 
matter.  He  resides  in  the  center  of  the  earth, 
near  the  planet  Kolob.  This  planet  revolves  on 
its  axis  once  in  a  thousand  of  our  years,  and  one 

23 


354 


revolution  of  the  Kolob  is  a  day  to  the  Almighty. 
The  Holy  Spirit  is  a  subtile  fluid  like  electricity, 
and  pervades  all  space.  By  its  agency  all  mira- 
cles— which  are  simply  the  effects  of  the  opera- 
tion of  natural  laws — are  performed.  The  Holy 
Spirit  is  communicated  by  the  laying  on  of 
hands  of  one  of  the  authorized  priesthood,  and 
the  recipient  is  then  enabled  to  perform  wonders 
according  to  his  gift, — some  having  the  gift  of 
prophecy,  some  of  healing,  some  of  speaking  in 
unknown  tongues,  etc.  There  are  three  heavens 
— the  telestial,  the  terrestrial,  and  the  celestial. 
The  telestial  and  terrestial  heavens  are  to  be  oc- 
cupied by  the  various  classes  of  persons  who 
have  neither  obeyed  nor  rejected  the  gospel. 
The  celestial  or  highest  heaven  is  reserved  for 
those  who  received  the  testimony  of  Jesus  and 
were  baptized.  The  earth,  as  purified  and  re- 
fined after  the  second  coming  of  Christ,  is  to  be 
the  final  habitation  of  those  entitled  to  the  glo- 
ries of  the  celestial  kingdom.  Jerusalem  is  to 
be  rebuilt ;  and  Zion,  or  the  New  Jerusalem,  is 
to  be  built  in  Jackson  County,  Missouri,  from 
whence  the  saints  were  expelled  in  1833.  There 
is  a  fourth  class  of  persons,  who  shall  go  into 
everlasting  punishment  with  the  devil  and  his 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  355 

angels.  They  are  those  who  sin  against  the 
Holy  Ghost.  The  gospel  that  all  people  must 
obey  to  gain  a  place  in  the  celestial  heaven  is : 
First,  they  must  believe  in  Jesus  Christ  as  the 
Son  of  God  and  in  his  authorized  priesthood; 
second,  they  must  repent  of  their  sins;  third, 
they  must  be  baptized  by  immersion  for  the  re- 
mission of  their  sins ;  and  fourth,  they  must  re- 
ceive the  laying  on  of  hands  for  the  gift  of  the 
Holy  Ghost.  "  God,  having  become  nearly  lost 
to  man,  revived  his  work  by  revealing  himself 
to  Joe  Smith  and  conferring  upon  him  the  keys 
of  everlasting  priesthood,  thus  making  him  the 
mediator  of  the  new  dispensation,  which  is  im- 
mediately to  precede  the  second  coming  of 
Christ."  All  those  who  recognize  the  divine 
authority  of  Smith  and  are  baptized  are  the 
chosen  people  of  God,  who  are  to  introduce  the 
millennium  and  to  reign  with  Christ  a  thousand 
years. 

There  are  many  secrets  in  the  organization 
which  the  saints  are  sworn  to  keep  under  heavy 
penalty,  it  is  said;  but  this  is  a  sketch  of  them, 
and  is  as  good  and  full  an  account  as  I  am  able 
to  give  to  be  consistent  with  my  purpose. 


356  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 


CHAPTER    IV. 

We  Leave  Salt  Lake — Reach  the  Sierra  Nevada  Slopes — Tun- 
nels, Gorges,  etc.  —  Reach  California  —  Sacramento  —  San 
Francisco — Hotel  Runners — Fruits — Palace  Hotel — Chinese 
—Dennis  Kearney  and  Party— De  Young-Kalloch  Tragedy 
— Chinese  Bakers — California  Climate — Ships — Golden  Gate 
—Woodward  Garden— Portland,  Oregon— Washington  Ter- 
ritory— Sail  for  Santa  Barbara  and  Los  Angeles — Prescott, 
Arizona — Meet  General  Fremont — Big  Trees — Return  to 
Ohio. 

We  camped  in  Salt  Lake  valley  nearly  three 
weeks,  and  our  stay  had  been  so  agreeable  that 
it  appeared  to  us  but  a  day.  We  now  concluded 
to  sell  our  outfit  and  take  passage  on  the  train 
for  California,  the  land  of  gold.  The  property 
was  soon  sold  and  tickets  were  purchased,  and  we 
stepped  aboard.  Our  new  team  snorted  and  its 
breath  curled  gracefully  upward,  and  we  moved 
smoothly  up  the  valley  near  the  beach  of  the 
great  salt  sea.  We  had  been  toiling  up  the 
rocky  sides  and  rolling  down  the  barren  slopes 
so  long  that  we  had  become  somewhat  used  to 
slow,  plodding  travel,  and  were  delighted  with 


THROUGH   THE  WEST.  357 

the  ease  and   speed  with  which  we  were   now 
winding  our  way  toward  the  Pacific  shores. 

We  soon  passed  out  from  between  the  tower- 
ing, snow-capped  walls,  and  crawling  along  the 
hill-sides  we  soon  came  upon  a  dry,  sandy  desert 
where  ofttimes  a  spire  of  grass  could  not  be  seen 
for  several  miles.  The  little  lakes  and  stream- 
lets lay  miles  apart,  and  their  brinks  were  all 
powdered  with  alkali  while  their  waters  were  as 
bitter  as  the  essence  of  gall.  The  whole  face  of 
the  plain  was  covered  with  thick,  spraddling 
sage-brush,  which  stood  in  the  sands  like  sap- 
lings in  a  new  forest ;  but  not  even  the  smallest 
animal  or  insect  nestled  or  sung  among  the 
limbs.  A  strong  puff  of  wind  roars  over  the 
desert,  and  the  sand  rises  in  the  air  and  looks 
like  a  great  column  of  light- colored  smoke. 
Where  the  brush  stand  in  thick  clumps  the  sand 
lodges ;  and  the  brush  sprouting  out  every  year, 
the  drift  grows  to  a  large  mound.  As  we  passed 
along  they  glistened  in  the  bright  sunlight  on 
either  side  of  the  way. 

There  are  section-houses  built  at  the  end  of 
every  division  of  the  road,  and  large,  powerful 
wind-pumps  roll  the  water  into  the  tanks  from 
far  below  the  burning  sand.  The  section-hands 


358 


stay  in  these  houses;  and  their  necessaries  are 
brought  them  by  the  company.  These  hands 
are  usually  Chinamen;  and  passing  them  at 
noon  they  will  be  found  seated  in  the  sand 
around  a  pot  of  rice,  greedily  eating  their  only 
food. 

Near  many  of  these  tanks  small  parties  of 
Indian  squaws,  girls,  papooses,  and  some  old 
men,  of  the  Shoshone  and  Winnemucca  tribes, 
were  wallowing  in  the  sand,  with  nothing  but  a 
few  skins  stretched  over  the  tops  of  the  brush 
to  shelter  them  from  the  blazing  orb ;  and  when 
the  engine  stopped  to  take  water  these  filthy 
creatures  would  run  along  each  side  of  the  train 
and  ask  for  biscuits.  Many  travelers  have  their 
lunch  along;  and  the  beggars  seldom  fail  to  get 
their  arms  filled  from  the  open  windows. 

When  the  train  was  in  motion  there  was  a 
breeze;  but  in  every  direction  the  heat  curled 
and  dangled  upward  from  the  scorching  sands 
like  rays  from  a  fiery  furnace.  It  was  a  dreary, 
lonesome  ride ;  and  we  sat  by  the  windows  peer- 
ing out  over  the  little  sand-mounds  that  rose  in 
the  distance  until  the  pine-covered  slopes  of  the 
Sierra  Nevadas  broke  the  monotony,  and  the 
breath  of  the  mountain  wafted  through  the 


THROJJGH   THE   WEST.  359 

open  car.  How  delightful  to  'be  among  the 
pretty  green  trees  again,  and  to  get  a  draught 
from  the  clear,  cool  waters  that  roll  out  from 
the  mountain-rocks  where  the  little  conies 
sport  among  the  crags. 

We  had  often  heard  of  the  great  tunnels  and 
snow-sheds,  and  the  mighty  tills  along  the  Cen- 
tral Pacific  line.  We  were  now  actually  06- 
serving  the  famous  pass- way ;  and  there  was  no 
part  of  our  journey  that  presented  such  a  vast 
amount  of  interesting  and  beautiful  scenery. 
Sometimes  we  would  wind  along  the  steep  side 
of  the  mountain,  far  above  the  tops  of  the  trees 
in  the  valley  below;  and  to  look  out  and  see  the 
crystal  waters  gush  from  the  bluff  and  dash 
down  over  the  rocky  precipices  and  lash  into 
foam  among  the  pines  is  grand  beyond  mention. 

Soon  the  conductor  comes  through  the  car, 
ordering  all  heads  and  arms  to  be  drawn  in  and 
the  windows  and  doors  closed,  and  warning  the 
passengers  not  to  get  frightened.  Then  a  flutter 
goes  through  the  car,  and  the  timid  breathe  short 
and  quick.  What  is  to  happen?  All  of  a  sud- 
den the  light  is  eclipsed,  the  timid  females  shriek 
wildly,  and  we  are  winding  through  the  dark, 
narrow  tunnel,  far  into  the  mountain.  It  is 


360  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

dark  as  midnight.  The  rolling  of  the  car- 
wheels  roars  like  thunder,  and  the  smoke  from 
the  engine  pours  in  through  every  crevice.  At 
length  we  suddenly  dart  into  the  light  again. 
A  din  of  relief  goes  through  the  car,  the 
windows  are  thrown  up,  and  everybody  is  anx- 
ious to  look  back  at  the  dismal  tunnel.  As  the 
front  cars  are  winding  around,  the  valleys  and 
over  the  gorges,  and  the  rear  cars  are  coming 
out  of  the  mountain,  the  train  looks  like  a  huge 
serpent  crawling  from  its  gloomy  den.  Now  we 
come  into  a  mighty  cut,  where  the  prints  of  the 
pick  and  shovel  are  seen  in  the  hard  earth,  and 
the  great  walla  on  either  side  are  left  rough 
with  the  blast;  and  now  we  run  over  a  fill,  and 
the  steady  heads  look  out  into  the  swimming 
space.  These  are  the  scenes  for  many  miles ; 
and  when  considering  the  immense  amount  of 
labor  it  must  have  required  to  pierce  the  mount- 
ains of  rock  and  fill  up  the  almost  bottomless 
gorges,  a  person  is  forced  to  exclaim,  "Wonder- 
ful, wonderful  man  ! " 

There  are  the  most  beautiful  trees  growing 
upon  the  slopes;  and  in  spite  of  the  efforts  of 
the  Government  to  save  the  timber  upon  its  va- 
cant lands,  saw-mills  are  buzzing  in  almost  every 


THROUGH   THE   WEST. 


361 


gorge,  and  the  finest  lumber  is  shipped  to  the 
East  and  West.  Fortunes  have  been  made  at 
this,  and  they  are  being  made  to-day  in  spite  of 


362 


the  penalty.  There  are  also  numerous  mines 
along  the  way.  At  some  places  the  whole 
mountain  appears  to  have  been  turned  upside 
down,  and  the  muddy  waters  slush  down  the 
rocky  rifts. 

Our  train  was  heavily  loaded,  and  two  engines 
were  required  at  some  places  to  haul  us  up  the 
mighty  grades  ;  and  the  puffing  of  the  powerfulr 
six-wheel  drivers  echoed  loudly  down  the  canons. 
Trains  are  compelled  to  run  very  slow  here;  and 
bands  of  robbers  sometimes  board  them,  andy 
under  cover  of  revolvers  and  guns,  rob  the  crew. 

We  at  length  left  the  Sierra  JS~evadas  to  the 
east  and  ran  out  upon  the  plains  of  California — 
the  beautiful,  level  land  of  gold.  We  had  now 
reached  the  famous  wheat  country, — where  it  is 
said  single  farmers  sometimes  raise  ten  and  fif- 
teen thousand  acres, — and  were  sailing  through 
the  renowned  delightful  and  healthy  climate. 
As  we  rolled  over  the  level  plain,  where  we 
could  see  for  many  miles  in  any  direction,  the 
platforms  and  windows  were  crowded  with  per- 
sons all  anxious  to  view  the  great  California,, 
whose  veins  are  gold,  and  whose  influence  has 
lain  many  human  bodies  among  the  rifts  and 
gulches  of  the  bleak  and  lonely  mountains;, 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  363 

Much  of  the  country  is  unfenced;  and  when 
otherwise,  the  fields  usually  contain  many  hun- 
dred acres.  At  many  places  along  the  track 
there  are  large  uncovered  platforms  built  upr 
and  thousands  of  bushels  of  grain  lay  there  in 
sacks  ready  for  shipment.  They  say  they  never 
put  their  grain  in  barns,  but  thrash  it  in  the 
fields  and  haul  it  to  the  platforms,  sometimes 
leaving  it  there  for  several  weeks  and  months 
before  shipping ;  for  there  is  no  danger  of  rain 
until  the  wet  season  sets  in.  The  grain  is  all 
headed. 

The  road  being  so  level  and  straight,  the  train 
flew  swiftly  along ;  and  we  soon  saw  the  spires 
and  steeples  of  the  capital  city  glittering  in  the 
distance.  Coming  into  Sacramento  the  train 
stopped  for  refreshments;  and  before  the  wheels 
stopped  rolling  the  cars  were  boarded  by  swarms 
of  hotel-runners,  who  almost  tried  to  force  the 
passengers  to  go  with  them  to  their  different  ho- 
tels. Some  of  our  comrades  went  along;  but 
we  had  heard  of  the  great  numbers  and  extreme 
insolence  of  the  runners  of  Sacramento  and  San 
Francisco,  and  from  the  looks  of  them  they  were 
but  a  gang  of  thieves,  so  we  concluded  to  hunt 
our  own  hotels  and  tend  to  our  own  business. 


364 


Sacramento  is  a  lovely  place,  with  pretty,  wide 
streets,  many  of  which  are  made  cool  and  de- 
lightful by  large  willows  standing  along  either 
side,  and  whose  green,  limber  branches  meet 
above  and  droop  over  the  way.  The  capitol  is 
a  large  building,  and  in  shape  and  color  re- 
sembles the  White  House. 

From  here  we  again  renewed  our  journey, 
and  at  last  entered  the  city  of  Oakland,  on  the 
shore  of  the  briny  bay.  The  dry  deserts  and 
rugged  mountains  had  been  crossed,  and  we 
were  finally  looking  upon  the  home  of  the  tide, 
where  the  sea-gull  sports  upon  the  waves. 

Frisco  (San  Francisco)  lies  across  the  bay — a 
distance  of  about  eight  miles — from  Oakland, 
and  there  are  large  steam-ferries  continually 
passing  back  and  forth.  We  went  aboard  the 
ferry ;  and  the  trip  was  so  pleasant  that  we 
thought  we  would  like  to  cross  the  ocean.  Sev- 
eral runners  came  over  to  Oakland  to  talk  with 
the  passengers  as  they  crossed  the  bay ;  but  on 
reaching  the  Frisco  shore,  I  swear  I  never  saw 
the  like,  and  it  would  be  impossible  to  describe 
the  scene.  There  must  have  been  seventy-five 
runners  there  from  the  different  hotels,  all  anx- 
ious to  take  you  to  a  good  house.  There  were 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  365 

sometimes   several   from   one   house,   and   their 
busses  were  all  backed  up  in  a  row.     As  soon  as- 
the  ferry  touched  the  wharf  these  fellows  rushed 
wildly  on  board,  crying  out  the  name   ot  their 
hotels  and  grabbing  the  luggage  from  the  hands 
of  the  passengers,  and  endeavoring  to  drag  them 
to  their  hacks.     Sometimes  a  couple  get  hold  of 
the  person,  and  a  couple  get  hold  of  his  luggage, 
each  wanting  to  take  him  and  his  property  in 
different  directions;   and  then  there  is  a  time. 
His  clothes  are  sometimes  torn  almost  off  him? 
his  satchel  is  torn  to  pieces,  and  he  finds  him- 
self perfectly  helpless  in  the  hands  of  the  mob; 
for  if  he  lets  go  and  goes  to  strike,  some  one 
will  run  off  with  his  property.     There  is  always 
a  great  crowd  of  people;  and  in  the  surging  and 
crowding,  and  high  excitement,   many   pockets 
are  picked,  and  much  luggage   is  lost  by   the 
owner  not  following  the  snatcher  as  he  runs  off 
for  the  hack.     The  boys  run  down  each  others 
hotels,  one  saying,  "They  don't  have  anything 
but  rotten  fish  to  eat  at  that  house;"   another 
saying,  "They  have  lousy  beds  at  that  house;" 
and  another  warning  all  persons  not  to  go  to 
either  for  they  are  robbers,  and  they  will  charge 
five  dollars  per  day  when  they  have  you  fast. 


366  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

Now,  to  see  several  of  these  fellows  all  pleading 
earnestly  with  a  plain  old  conscientious  farmer 
who  takes  everything  for  the  truth  is  entirely 
too  funny.  He  first  looks  at  one  and  then  at 
the  other,  not  knowing  which  one  to  trust.  We 
were  well  fixed ;  for  some  of  us  could  carry  the 
luggage  while  the  others  knocked  down  the 
runners.  The  better  way  is  to  get  the  name  of 
some  good  hotel  before  you  get  there,  and  then 
look  for  the  'bus  and  make  for  it.  In  any  case, 
persons  should  securely  fasten  their  luggage  to 
them  with  ropes. 

The  surface  is  level  for  a  couple  of  hundred 
yards  back  from  the  bay,  and  it  then  ascends 
sharply  to  the  top  of  a  high  ridge  running  par- 
allel with  the  bay.  The  surface  is  barren,  and 
the  sand  is  deep  and  soft.  On  this  level  strip 
and  against  this  steep,  sandy  hill  stands  the 
great  city  of  San  Francisco.  The  house-founda- 
tions are  all  laid  deeply,  to  get  below  the  sand ; 
.and  the  streets  are  all  paved  with  several  layers 
of  round  rocks,  with  nothing  to  smooth  the  sur- 
face. There  is  nearly  always  a  pretty  strong 
wind  stirring,  and  the  streets  have  to  be  kept 
perfectly  clean.  For  this  purpose  large  street- 
sweepers  are  drawn  over  the  road  by  horses 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  367 

every  day,  and  spi inkling  is  done  besides.  The 
riding  and  driving  over  these  rocks  is  very  disa- 
greeable ;  and  the  horses  do  not  usually  last  very 
long.  To  see  them  drawing  their  great  loads  up 
the  steep  hill-side,  slipping,  sliding,  and  strain- 
ing every  nerve,  and  sometimes  falling  upon 
their  knees  on  the  stones,  is  an  ugly  sight  in- 
deed. The  large  wholesale  houses  all  have 
heavy  trucks ;  and  many  of  the  finest  teams  I 
ever  saw  were  hauling  these  trucks. 

There  is  an  immense  quantity  of  the  very 
largest  and  finest  fruits  raised  in  California 
every  year.  I  believe  I  have  seen  as  many 
grapes,  pears,  peaches,  and  melons  in  the  streets 
of  San  Francisco  in  one  day  as  there  are  raised 
in  the  State  of  Ohio  in  a  whole  year.  I  have 
seen  several  millions  of  fine  melons  lying  in  a 
single  heap.  There  are  several  mammoth  fruit- 
stores  here,  and  hundreds  of  bushels,  during  the 
season,  are  daily  loaded  upon  the  ships  for  other 
countries.  I  might  also  add  that,  though  Cali- 
fornia fruits  are  large  and  beautiful,  much  of  it 
lacks  the  flavor  of  eastern  fruits, — perhaps  from 
the  fact  that  during  its  growth  it  gets  no  rain 
but  depends  solely  on  the  heavy  dew  for  its 
nourishment. 


368 


There  are  street-cars  on  almost  every  street; 
and  they  are  run  up  and  down  the  incline  by  en- 
gines stationed  at  the  top  of  the  hill.  It  is  very 
pleasant  riding  up  and  down  here,  and  the  cars 
are  full  on  almost  every  trip. 

Though  there  are  some  very  large,  fine  build- 
ings, the  city  is  very  ordinary  on  this  score, 
there  being  also  many  little  old  shanties  stuck 
here  and  there  all  through  the  place.  The  Pal- 
ace Hotel  is  the  finest  building  in  the  city,  and 
is  said  to  be  the  largest  hotel  in  the  world.  It 
is  built  of  beautiful  polished  stone,  is  seven  sto- 
ries high,  contains  seven  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  rooms,  and  takes  up  a  whole  square,  front- 
ing upon  every  side.  In  the  center  of  the  build- 
ing there  is  a  round  space  of  about  twenty  yards 
in  diameter  running  from  the  bottom  to  the  top; 
and  there  are  walks  all  around  this  from  each 
story.  Persons  are  let  up  and  down  here  by  ele- 
vators. There  is  a  large,  beautiful  rockery  all 
decorated  with  lovely  flowers  in  the  center  of 
this  space;  and  the  clear,  cool  water  from  a 
pretty  fountain  is  thrown  high  in  the  air  and  de- 
scends softly  and  refreshingly  upon  the  tender 
roses  and  mossy  rocks.  There  is  a  grand  arch- 
way leading  into  this  area  from  one  of  the 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  369 

streets,  and  carnages  are  driven  through  this 
and  around  the  beautiful  rockery  where  the  air 
is  fragrant  with  the  sweet  breath  of  the  flowers. 
Guests  are  thus  lifted  into  and  out  of  their  car- 
riages always  in  the  dry.  The  house  is  in  all 
respects  a  perfect  structure,  and  is  furnished 
with  the  finest  and  most  costly  furniture.  The 
rates  are  from  five  to  ten  dollars  per  day;  though 
good  boarding  can  be  had  in  the  city  for  from 
four  to  six  dollars  per  week.  Here  is  where 
General  Grant  and  party  put  up  when  they 
reached  San  Francisco  in  their  trip  round  the 
world.  The  other  principal  houses  are  the 
Baldwin,  Franklin,  Central  Pacific,  and  Hotel 
Rhein. 

There  are  great  numbers  of  saloons,  gambling- 
houses,  and  variety-shows,  and  whole  gangs  of 
the  very  lowest  prostitutes  in  the  city.  A  large 
proportion  of  the  inhabitants  are  the  rakings  of 
many  nations ;  and  I  feel  very  sure  that  there  is 
not  another  city  sitting  upon  the  shores  of  the 
Pacific  Ocean  of  more  notorious  lewduess  and 
low  vices  than  this  place. 

We  heard  much  about  the  Chinese,  and  had 
seen  a  few  ;  but  here  were  thousands  of  them,  of 
every  shape  and  size.  The  business-houses  on 


370  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

each  side  of  one  of  the  streets  for  a  half  mile 
through  the  city  are  almost  exclusively  occupied 
by  them.  Their  business  ranges  from  the  thea- 
ter down  to  the  poultry-pen.  This  street  is 
called  China  Street. 

Very  few  of  the  Chinamen  have  brought  their 
wives  over  with  them,  and  the  females  who  are 
here  are  nearly  all  prostitutes;  so  the  men  do 
their  own  cooking  and  washing.  They  are 
nearly  all  good  at  this,  however;  and  I  have 
learned  that  they  are  taught  to  do  this  in  their 
native  land.  It  appears  that  none  of  them  come 
to  this  country  with  the  intention  of  staying, 
but  intend  only  to  make  little  fortunes  and  then 
take  it  back  to  China;  and  it  is  said  that  the 
bones  of  every  deceased  one  are  sent  home  for 
interment.  They  are  therefore  very  economical, 
and  live  almost  exclusively  on  rice  and  cooked 
fish.  The  former  they  have  shipped  from  China 
by  the  wholesale,  and  the  latter  they  catch 
themselves;  so  that  grub  costs  them  very  little. 

At  meal-time  groups  of  from  six  to  twelve 
gather  round  a  large  pot  of  rice  and  a  great 
dish  of  cooked  fish  and  take  their  meals.  Each 
person  is  provided  with  a  cup,  and  two  little 
sticks,  about  the  size  of  a  lead-pencil,  which 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  371 

they  hold  in  their  fingers  like  a  bone-rattler 
holds  his  bones.  The  rice  is  dipped  into  the 
cup  and  the  cup  is  placed  to  the  lips ;  and  as 
they  rake  the  rice  into  their  mouths  with  the 
sticks  it  makes  an  observer  think  of  playing  the 
jew's-harp.  Now  and  then  they  reach  over  and 
clamp  a  piece  of  fish  between  the  sticks.  And 
they  appear  to  relish  this  food  as  much  as  though 
it  were  the  richest  delicacy. 

At  night  they  gather  in  squads  and  crouch  to- 
gether upon  the  floor  like  hogs.  They  have  but 
a  few  blankets  for  beds.  By  living  in  this  way 
their  expenses  are  consequently  very  light ;  and 
the  poor,  laboring  white  man  is  underbidden  in 
his  labor,  while  the  slaving  washer-woman  is 
driven  from  her  tub  by  this  heathen  competition. 

The  sorrowful  consequences  of  Chinese  com- 
petition can  never  be  realized  until  once  ob- 
served. Some  say  it  is  right, — that  what  one 
human  lives  on,  another  should  be  able  to. 
But  I  say  shame  on  the  person  who  would  ask, 
or  even  wish  to  see  his  fellow-man  live  as  do 
these  vile,  filthy,  heathen  competitors.  We  boast 
of  our  land  and  Government  as  being  the  pride 
of  the  world,  the  asylum  of  the  oppressed,  the 
home  for  the  weary,  where  labor  is  fairly  reward- 


372  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

ed,  and  where  human  happiness  is  not  all 
drowned  by  the  necessary  cares  of  life.  To  ask 
this  competition  is  to  ask  our  laboring  brothers 
to  live  as  the  subjects  of  the  most  wicked  tyrant 
on  the  earth,  and  our  poor  sisters  as  she  who 
comes  down  the  foreign  hill-side  with  a  great 
load  upon  her  head,  knitting  on  the  way.  There 
are  about  fifty  thousand  in  the  city  ;  and  every 
ship  from  China  brings  more  to  the  shore.  It 
is  needless  to  say  that  the  laboring  classes  are 
indignant  at  the  outrage,  and  that  the  city  is 
constantly  in  the  wildest  commotion.  In  their 
part  of  the  town  they  have  dark  secret  excava- 
tions in  the  earth,  entered  by  trap-doors  and 
narrow  passes,  and  in  here  are  their  opium-dens, 
and  gambling-hells,  and  prostitution  apartments. 
No  ray  of  sunlight  ever  reaches  these  cells;  and 
the  fumes  of  filth  and  crime  ooze  out  of  the 
crevices  like  smoke  from  a  kiln.  There  are 
some  back  streets  in  which  it  is  not  safe  to  travel 
after  dark;  and  the  air  is  contaminated  with  the 
most  loathsome,  contagious,  and  dangerous  dis- 
eases. Some  of  these  low  places  have  been 
broken  up  by  the  police ;  but  they  have  never 
been  able  to  find  half  of  them. 

There  are  three  political  parties  in  California 
— the  Republican,  Democratic,  and  the  Work- 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  373 

ingmen's  Party  of  California  (W.  P.  C.)— the 
latter  led  by  Dennis  Kearney.  We  were  there 
during  the  campaign  of  1879,  and  more  excite- 
ment I  never  saw.  The  only  issue  was  the 
Chinese  question;  and  each  candidate  would 
hop  upon  a  wagon  or  store-box  every  night,  and 
cry  out,  "Elect  me,  and  the  Chinese  with  their 
leprosy  shall  be  driven  from  the  state.  Vote  for 
me,  and  I  will  make  hell  a  paradise,"  etc.,  etc. 
The  W.  P.  C.  is  composed  of  the  vile  dregs  of 
almost  every  nation  ;  and  decency  and  manhood 
are  not  to  be  found  in  its  ranks.  Dennis  Kear- 
ney is  a  rash,  illiterate,  blood-thirsty  fiend,  whose 
regular  business  is  draying — an  occupation  he  is 
only  calculated  for ;  and  to  see  this  mob  parading 
the  streets,  with  Chinamen  stamped  upon  their 
banners  in  all  horrible  positions,  shouting,  pro- 
faning, and  declaring  open  violence  to  the  Chi- 
nese and  all  persons  who  speak  for  them,  is 
enough  to  disgust  man  with  his  fellow-kindred. 
The  question  is  worthy  of  agitation;  but  vio- 
lence is  not  the  instrument  with  which  to  cure 
the  evils  of  a  civilized  world.  Kearney  is  bold, 
rash,  and  ambitious;  and  these  are  the  qualities 
admired  by  such  people  as  belong  to  the  W.  P. 
C.  It  is  wonderful,  the  influence  this  man  has 
over  his  followers. 


374 


Most  persons  know  about  the  DeYoung-Kal- 
loch  tragedy ;  and  the  truth  is  as  follows,  for  I 
was  there  and  saw  the  shooting :  DeYoung  was 
the  editor  of  the  Chronicle  (a  Republican  paper), 
and  I.  M.  Kalloch  was  a  minister — a  smart  man, 
but  one  whose  religion  was  as  transient  as  the 
morning  dew,  and  wrho,  wishing  a  political 
benefit,  stepped  from  the  sacred  altar  into  the 
polluted  ranks  of  Kearney's  howling  mob.  He 
was  nominated  for  mayor  of  the  city,  and  went 
about  agitating  and  encouraging  his  party  to 
violence  in  the  strongest  language.  He  abused 
the  leaders  of  other  parties  in  bitter  phrases; 
and  upon  one  occasion  referred  to  De  Young  as 
a  lousy  bastard,  nursed  and  reared  in  the  lap  of 
a  prostitute,  and  whose  life  was  poison  to  San 
Francisco.  DeYoung  got  to  hear  of  the  infa- 
mous charges  made  against  his  poor  old  mother, 
whose  body  was  laid  in  the  grave,  and,  unable  to 
control  his  temper,  he  hired  a  coupe  and  negro  to 
drive  him  to  Kalloch's  house,  and  sent  in  for  him 
to  come  out,  saying  that  a  lady  wished  to  see 
him.  As  he  came  near  the  coupe,  DeYoung  flung 
open  the  door  and  fired  upon  him,  one  ball  passing 
into  his  body  and  another  into  his  groins.  He 
fell.  But  before  DeYoung  could  finish  his  work 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  375 

a  rnob  turned  over  the  coupe  and  jerked  him  out ; 
and  bnt  for  the  brave  police,  he  would  have  been 
mangled  beyond  recognition  in  a  few  minutes. 
DeYoung  was  bound  over  in  bail  of  twenty 
thousand  dollars,  to  answer  the  charge  of  shoot- 
ing with  intent  to  kill ;  but  before  he  was  tried 
he  was  killed  by  his  victim's  son.  I.  M.  Kal- 
loch  recovered  from  his  wounds,  and,  having 
been  elected,  served  the  city  as  mayor. 

DeYoung  was  murdered  by  young  I.  S.  Kal- 
loch  as  follows:  One  evening,  a  little  after  twi- 
light,— after  I.  M.  Kalloch  was  sound  and  well, 
and  was  tilling  his  office, — DeYoung  came  from 
his  home  and  entered  his  office;  but  before  he 
got  behind  the  desk,  I.  S.  Kalloch,  who  had  been 
prowling  around  the  building  watching  his  oppor- 
tunity, rushed  through  the  door  and  fired  upon 
his  victim.  His  first  two  shots  took  slight  effect; 
and  DeYoung  was  behind  his  desk  and  had  his 
own  pistol  raised  when  a  third  ball  from  his  as- 
sailant entered  his  mouth  and  laid  him  dying 
upon  the  floor  at  the  feet  of  his  brother  Michael. 
The  murderer  was  seized  and  put  in  jail,  and  the 
Workingmen's  Party  called  a  meeting  at  the 
Sand  Lots  and  had  a  grand  jollification  over  the 
result;  and  extravagant  eulogiums  were  heaped 


376  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

upon  young  Kalloch,  who  was  so  brave  and  who 
served  his  party  so  well.  He  had  his  trail ;  and 
though  clearly  guilty  of  murder  in  the  first  de- 
gree, and  deserving  of  blackest  torture  known  to 
the  law,  he  was  acquitted  on  the  ground  of  self- 
defense.  His  party  was  overjoyed  at  the  result, 
and  loading  him  in  a  carriage  they  pulled  him 
by  hand  all  over  the  city. 

Charles  DeYoung  was  a  bitter  partisan,  and 
made  use  of  extravagant  language  from  the 
stump,  but  I.  M.  Kalloch  was  infinitely  worse ; 
and  though  the  latter  made  a  low,  cowardly  as- 
sault upon  a  poor  old  woman  whose  body  was 
returning  to  the  dust  from  whence  it  came,  and 
should  have  been  stoned  from  the  stand,  De- 
Young  was  certainly  not  justified  in  his  shooting 
at  the  time  he  did  it,  and  should  have  been  pun- 
ished ;  but  it  was  clearly  not  the  part  of  the  Kal- 
lochs,  who  came  down  out  of  the  pulpit  and 
placed  themselves  at  the  head  of  the  ranks  of 
an  indecent  mob,  to  administer  it.  Excitement 
was  running  high  at  the  time  DeYoung  shot 
Kalloch,  and  the  Chinese,  knowing  that  they 
were  the  cause  of  the  trouble,  were  daily  ex- 
pecting an  outbreak.  "When  the  report  of  the 
pistol  was  heard,  and  people  rushed  to  and 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  377 

fro,  Chinatown  was  in  a  stir;  and  every  little  old 
back  shed  and  kitchen-roof  was  covered  with 
Chinamen  with  shot-guns  and  big  rocks,  fully 
expecting  an  attack,  and  determined  to  fight  it 
out.  Such  jabbering  one  never  heard.  Terror 
reigned  supreme,  and  mobs  of  indecent,  beastly 
wretches  ran  through  the  streets  crying  for  vio- 
lence and  mob-law.  A  meeting  of  the  party 
was  called  to  determine  what  to  do;  and  in  the 
afternoon  several  thousand  people  assembled  at 
the  Sand  Lots — a  couple  of  lots  just  outside  the 
corporation,  where  the  sand  is  very  deep,  and 
v:here  the  W.  P.  C.'s  held  their  meetings.  The 
assembly  was  addressed  by  several  of  the  leaders. 
Whenever  a  man  would  get  up  and  did  not  talk 
straight  "hang,"  he  was  jerked  down  and  the 
mob  would  yell  like  tigers;  but  when  a  speaker 
would  cry  for  blood,  and  pollute  the  very  air 
with  profanity,  the  hearts  would  beat  quick  and 
the  eyes  glisten.  There  were  several  guns  and 
pistols  glistening  in  the  crowd,  and  for  awhile 
things  looked  a  little  like  hanging;  and  the  party 
being  in  a  majority  in  the  city,  it  could  have 
been  accomplished.  But  about  the  time  the  reso- 
lution was  to  be  adopted  a  dispatch  was  receiv- 
ed from  Kearney  (who  was  awray),  asking  them 


378 


to  wait  until  he  arrived.  By  this  time  the  jail 
was  surrounded  by  a  strong  military  guard,  and 
the  violence  was  not  attempted. 

Such  is  W.  P.  C.,  and  such  is  the  true  history 
of  the  DeYoung-Kalloch  troubles.  I  have,  per- 
haps, dwelt  longer  upon  this  subject  than  I  have 
been  justified  in  doing;  but  I  was  so  utterly  dis- 
gusted with  the  beastly  actions  of  these  villains, 
and  so  fully  impressed  with  the  violence  threat- 
ened to  justice,  and  the  danger  into  which  a 
government  is  plunged  where  illiteracy  takes  the 
throne,  that  I  could  not  refrain. 

When  it  was  known  that  the  Grant  party 
were  to  stop  in  the  city,  the  citizens  began  to 
prepare  for  a  grand  reception.  But  Kearney 
called  a  meeting  of  his  followers  and  denounced 
the  Republican  party  in  severest  epithets.  He 
called  General  Grant  its  leader,  and  denounced 
him  as  a  tyrant  who  was  seeking  the  power  of 
the  nation,  and  told  his  men  not  to  turn  out  in 
the  parade,  but  while  they  were  marching 
through  the  streets  they  would  meet  at  the  Sand 
Lots  and  burn  General  Grant  in  effigy.  The 
speech  took  great  effect  on  the  party,  and  it 
looked  as  though  it  would  be  hardly  safe  for  the 
general  to  come  to  the  city.  Several  of  the 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  379 

good,  resolute  citizens  waited  upon  Kearney 
and  told  him  that  if  he  ever  attempted  to  carry 
out  his  threats  his  body  would  be  pierced  with 
a  thousand  bullets.  The  warning  was  sufficient; 
and  on  the  arrival  of  the  party,  Kearney  and  his 
minions  were  quiet;  and  the  Republican  party 
tired  thirty  salutes  from  the  Sand  Lots  in  honor 
of  the  greatest  general  on  earth. 

We  were  in  the  city  on  election-day;  and  such 
a  time  I  never  saw.  The  Ohio  boys  who  talk  of 
political  excitement  ought  to  have  been  there. 
There  were  eighty  special  police  appointed,  and 
on  nearly  every  corner  there  was  a  tight.  Three 
men  were  shot,  several  were  wounded,  and  the 
station-houses  were  crowded.  The  W.  P.  C.'s- 
carried  the  city,  but  the  state  went  Republican. 

The  Chinese  question  is  a  cloud  hanging  over 
California ;  and  what  the  result  will  be  can  not 
be  told.  Surely  some  modification  of  the  Bur- 
lingame  treaty  is  needed  as  badly  as  a  protection 
tariff.  There  are  about  fifty  thousand  in  the 
city  of  Frisco,  and  they  are  scattered  in  almost 
every  city  in  the  state.  Large  societies  are  or- 
ganized, and  all  joiners  pledge  themselves  not  to 
employ  Chinese  labor;  and  though  many  join,, 
some  of  the  big  employers  work  to  their  own 


380  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

interests,  and  employ  those  who  can  be  got  the 
cheapest,  be  they  Chinamen  or  not.  Many  of 
the  large  hotels  and  bakeries  employ  Chinese; 
and  more  beautiful  bread,  biscuits,  and  pies  than 
they  turn  out  were  never  seen.  The  secret  of 
their  success  has  been  discovered,  however,  and 
they  have  been  driven  off  in  some  places.  They 
fill  their  mouth  with  warm  water,  and  with  a 
peculiar  whist  they  blow  it  out  in  sprays  as  fine 
as  the  morning  mist,  over  the  dough  while 
kneading.  In  this  way  the  dough  is  worked 
and  rolled  in  good  order,  and  then  placed  in  the 
oven.  When  it  is  of  a  delicate  brown  it  is  drawn 
out,  a  lump  of  butter  is  melted  in  the  mouth 
and  then  blown  over  it,  and  the  crust  becomes 
soft  as  sponge.  To  persons  with  calloused  stom- 
achs, or  to  those  who  are  ignorant  of  the  process, 
it  is  perfectly  delicious.  As  for  us,  we  did  not 
choose  to  eat  spit,  be  it  native  or  imported. 
The  laundry-men  dampen  their  clothes  in  the 
same  way;  and  when  several  are  at  work  in  the 
same  house  they  make  almost  as  much  noise  as 
the  cylinder-cocks  on  a  steam-engine,  and  you 
can  hear  them  clear  out  on  the  street. 

California  is  noted  for  its  beautiful,  even  cli- 
mate.    There  are  two  seasons — the  wet  and  the 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  381 

dry.  The  former  sets  in  about  November  first 
and  continues  until  about  April  first.  During 
this  season  it  rains  almost  every  day,  and  the 
sun  is  hidden  sometimes  for  several  weeks  at  a 
time;  and  except  in  the  mountains,  it  seldom 
gets  cold.  During  the  dry  season  there  is  no 
rain,  and  crops  are  nourished  by  the  heavy  dews 
This  is  the  reason  corn  does  no  good  here.  The 
summers  are  usually  warm.  The  temperature 
has  been  known  to  reach  120°,  and  little  birds 
have  been  seen  to  drop  suffocated  from  the  trees. 
The  mornings  and  evenings  of  the  warmest  days 
are  usually  so  cool,  from  the  sea-breeze,  that  fire 
is  comfortable  and  persons  can  sleep  under  a 
pair  of  blankets.  It  is  usually  about  ten  o'clock 
before  fog  clears  away  sufficient  to  let  through 
the  rays  of  the  sun.  Of  course  there  is  some 
difference  between  the  climate  of  the  northern 
and  the  southern  parts  of  the  state. 

The  ocean,  to  us,  was  the  subject  of  great  at- 
traction ;  and  we  loved  to  sit  upon  a  bluff  at  the 
beach  and  see  the  tide  come  rolling  in  and  hear 
it  roar  as  the  briny  spray  was  lashed  up  against 
the  rocky  shores  and  tossed  back  into  foam,  and 
see  the  multitudes  of  ships  anchored  in  the  bay, 
whose  rigging  looked  like  a  vast  net- work. 


382  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

We  saw  ships  here  nearly  five  hundred  feet 
long,  which  drew  twenty-three  feet  of  water  and 
were  twenty  feet  out  of  the  water.  To  see  these 
great  ships  going  out  and  coming  in  is  a  grand 
sight  indeed.  As  they  plow  through  the  water 
the  brine  is  churned  into  foam  and  the  waves 
roll  several  feet  high  behind  them,  and  the  sur- 
face is  left  disturbed  far  in  the  rear.  It  is  pleas- 
ant to  see  a  ship  from  a  foreign  port  draw  up  to 
the  wharf  and  hear  the  warm  greetings  of 
friends.  The  wharf  is  all  lined  with  persons, — 
many  anxious  to  see  some  one, — and  when  the 
planks  are  thrown  out  they  rush  on  board ;  and 
to  see  the  warm  embraces  and  affectionate  sa- 
lutes of  dear  friends  whom  the  briny  waves 
rolled  between  for  perhaps  several  years  is 
enough  to  hurry  the  blood  in  one's  veins  and  lift 
his  heart  high  in  his  bosom.  But,  on  the  other 
hand,  oh!  how  sorrowful  to  see  friends  part. 
The  ship  is  loaded  arid  the  time  is  set  for  start- 
ing; and  persons  taking  passage  gather  on 
board;  and  their  friends  sit  by  their  sides  talking 
and  telling  messages  to  carry  to  friends  beyond. 
The  minutes  fly  like  seconds,  and  the  time 
comes  nearer  and  nearer;  and  at  length  the  or- 
der is  given  to  draw  in  the  planks.  Quivering 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  383 

lips  are  then  touched  and  trembling  hands  are 
shaken,  and  with  a  sorrowful  "Good-by"  those 
not  going  rush  ashore.  The  planks  are  drawn 
in,  the  moorings  are  cut  loose,  the  great  ship  is 
hauled  out  into  the  open  bay  by  a  tug-boat,  and 
when  she  is  whirled  about  and  her  bow  pointed 
toward  the  Golden  Gate  the  cannon  is  fired,  the 
great  wheel  begins  to  roll,  and  the  great  mon- 
ster, looking  like  a  planet  upon  the  waves, 
moves  gracefully  away.  Then  comes  the  affect- 
ing scene.  Friends  stand  upon  the  beach  waving 
their  handkerchiefs,  and  as  they  see  the  dearest 
on  earth  glide  out  of  sight  upon  the  treacherous 
waves  vent  is  given  to  strongest  grief,  and  heart- 
rending sighs  waft  out  upon  the  ocean  breeze. 

I  have  witnessed  eome  touching  scenes,  one  of 
which  I  shall  not  soon  forget.  I  was  at  the 
wharf  when  the  great  ship  Australia  was 
whirled  about,  her  cannon  discharged,  and  she 
started  for  the  island  from  which  she  took  her 
name;  and  I  saw  the  scene.  There  was  one 
aged  woman  whose  only  son  was  on  board ;  and 
she  stood  upon  the  shore  and  sobbed  as  if  her 
heart  would  break  as  he  rode  away.  When  the 
ship  faded  in  the  distance  she  fainted  away  and 
was  carried  off.  Oh  !  what  great  necessity  must 


384  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

have  forced  that  son  abroad,  or  what  a  hard  and 
cruel  heart  he  must  have  had  to  grieve  his  poor 
old  mother's  heart  and  drown  her  cries  in  the 
briny  waves.  How  I  thought  of  the  great 
Washington,  who  gave  up  his  voyage  because  of 
his  good  mother's  grief. 

We  were  not  satisfied  with  looking  over  the 
waters,  but  we  were  anxious  to  ride  the  waves. 
Accordingly  we  hired  a  plunger,  about  twenty 
feet  long,  with  a  mast  about  twelve  feet  high 
and  a  single  sail ;  and  though  we  were  all  green- 
horns upon  the  waters,  we  pushed  into  the  ba}T. 
We  thought  we  would  take  a  fish ;  so  we  got 
tackling,  bought  three  fish-worms  for  twenty 
cents,  and  dragged  our  lines  behind  the  boat. 
We  started  early  in  the  morning  when  the  wind 
was  low  and  the  tide  was  running  out;  and  we 
sailed  merrily  away. 

The  Golden  Gate  is  about  six  miles  up  the 
bay;  and  we  glided  among  the  tugs  and  schoon- 
ers and  around  the  great  anchored  steamers,  and 
at  length  reached  the  gate.  Here  the  bay  nar- 
rows, and  the  entrance  to  the  open  sea  is  about 
half  a  mile  wide.  On  either  side  the  rough, 
barren  bluffs  rise  several  hundred  feet  high;  and 
numbers  of  big  government  guns  planted  upon 
the  crests  look  down  over  the  gateway. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  385 


We  launched  out  into  the  sea  and  for  our  first 
time  rode  upon  the  king  of  waters.  The  breeze 
was  favorable,  and  we  shot  along  until  the  beach 
was  left  in  the  dim  distance.  We  then  con- 
cluded we  were  far  enough.  As  far  as  the  eye 
could  reach  the  waters  idly  tossed ;  and  the  mist 
hung  over  the.  sea  like  smoke  over  a  burning 
prairie.  The  sea-gulls  rocked  upon  the  waves, 
the  spirt- whales  rose  to  the  surface  and  blew  the 
brine  far  into  the  air,  and  the  dark  sea-lions 
rose  to  utter  their  loud  roars  and  then  disappear 
again  among  the  waves. 

Our  sail  out  was  very  pleasant;  but  the  wind 
had  now  grown  strong,  and  being  directly 
against  us  on  our  return — with  our  little  knowl- 
edge of  sailing — we  were  in  bad  quarters.  We 
tossed  about,  and  several  times  came  near  upset- 
ting. We  had  to  jerk  down  the  sail,  and  at 
length  learned  to  manage  the  rudder  and  to  zig- 
zag the  boat;  and  about  twilight  we  glided  back 
through  the  gate  into  the  bay.  The  wind  was 
now  roaring  over  the  sea,  and  the  waves  rolled 
and  tossed  and  churned  it  into  foam ;  and  it 
seemed  to  me  that  every  time  we  came  down 
we  were  going  clear  under.  We  here  turned 
with  the  breeze  again,  and  shot  down  through 

25 


386 


ROMSPERT S   TRAVELS 


the  bay,  with  the  tide,  like  an  arrow.     We  ran 
down  among  the  other  vessels  at  the  harbor  and 


SAN      FRANCISCO      BAY. 


were  lashed  up  against  their  sides  .and  tossed 
helplessly  about  until  eight  o'clock,  when  we 
came  up  to  the  shore.  We  had  not  caught  a 
fish,  and  boat-riding  had  ceased  to  be  pleasant. 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  387 

The  owner  was  very  anxious  about  his  boat;  for 
he  said  he  had  lost  several  boats  by  greenhorns 
taking  them  out  and  getting  capsized  and  sink- 
ing them.  God  knows  we  were  as  anxious  to 
bring  the  boat  in  safely  as  he  was. 

We  had  often  thought  and  talked  about  swim- 
ming to  the  shore  from  wrecks  on  the  ocean ; 
but  since  we  saw  the  waters  we  think  swimming 
is  but  a  faint  hope;  for  when  the  breeze  is  so 
light  that  it  is  hardly  noticeable  the  waters  toss 
a  foot  high,  and  when  the  wind  blows  a  little 
they  roll  several  feet  high,  and  at  no  time  is  the 
surface  still  and  smooth. 

The  tide  goes  out  every  morning  and  comes 
in  every  evening;  and  it  is  delightful  to  sit  upon 
the  beach  when  the  pale  beams  of  the  sinking 
sun  are  kissing  the  waves,  and  see  it  come  roll- 
ing in.  Kidges  of  water  about  three  feet  high, 
reaching  from  right  to  left  as  far  as  the  eye  can 
reach  and  about  one  hundred  yards  apart,  chase 
each  other  to  the  shore ;  and  as  they  strike  upon 
the  breakers  the  spray  is  lashed  high  against  the 
rocky  beach  and  roars  like  a  forest  hurricane.  I 
have  sat  here  for  hours,  lost  in  reflection ;  and  the 
spell  was  only  broken  by  the  falling  of  the  twi- 
light veil. 


388 


There  are  persons  here  who  make  their  living 
by  fishing;  and  almost  every  day  they  set  out 
for  the  mouth  of  the  Sacramento  River  or  the 
southern  neck  of  the  bay,  and  at  night  come 
back  with  their  boats  loaded  with  the  most  beau- 
tiful fish.  I  have  seen  sturgeon  four  feet  long, 
and  with  heads  as  large  as  a  man's. 

There  is  yet  another  place  of  which  I  must 
speak  in  connection  with  Frisco,  and  that 
is  Woodward's  Garden,  a  place  noted  for  its 
beauty  and  known  by  everybody  for  miles 
around.  It  is  situated  on  a  hill  about  a  mile 
south  of  the  city,  and  is  surrounded  by  a  high, 
strong  fence  and  a  thick  growth  of  tall  cedars. 
It  contains  about  four  acres,  and  is  decorated 
with  the  most  beautiful  tirs,  cedars,  and  droop- 
ing willows;  and  great  fountains  toss  their  cool, 
sparkling  waters  high  in  the  air  and  fall  it  into 
nice,  large  ponds,  where  sport  almost  all  kinds 
of  aquatic  animals  and  fowls. 

There  are  several  pretty  passes  under  the  hills 
and  some  lovely  caves  through  which  course 
streamlets  of  clear,  cool  water.  In  the  walls  of 
these  caves  are  arranged  large  glass  cases 
through  which  the  water  bubbles  and  in  which 
nestle,  among  pretty  pieces  of  coral,  the  most 


THROUGH   THE   WEST.  389 

beautiful  fishes  of  all  shapes  and  colors.  Some 
have  no  eyes ;  and  others  have  such  curious 
shapes  that  it  takes  close  observation  to  find  the 
head  or  even  to  tell  whether  they  are  animate 
objects. 

There  are  several  fine,  large  buildings  in  the 
garden,  and  one  of  the  finest  museums  I  ever 
passed  through.  Birds  of  the  most  gaudy  plum- 
age, from  every  climate  of  the  earth,  sing  and 
croak  among  the  little  trees  in  their  fine,  large 
cages,  and  the  air  was  laded  with  their  sweet, 
merry  songs. 

There  is  also  an  elegant  theater,  and  lunch- 
rooms ;  and  there  are  several  entertainments  given 
here  each  week.  On  the  whole,  I  suppose  there 
is  not  a  more  beautiful,  interesting,  and  instruct- 
ive place  on  the  continent.  All  persons -visiting 
California  should  by  all  means  go  to  see  this 
great  museum.  Great  crowds  gather  into  the 
garden  almost  every  day, — especially  Sunday, — 
and  the  admission  being  twenty-five  cents  there 
must  be  thousands  of  dollars  taken  in  every 
year;  though  it  must  also  take  a  vast  amount  to 
keep  up  the  place.  There  are  so  many  subter- 
ranean passages  and  high,  curious  galleries  that 
it  takes  a  half  day  to  examine  all  the  beauties 


390  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

and  curiosities ;  and  strangers  will  miss  half 
then  unless  they  hire  a  guide  to  take  them 
through. 

We  had  now  traveled  every  street  and  fully 
acquainted  ourselves  with  the  great  city  of  San 
Francisco,  and  had  made  excursions  out  through 
the  country  for  miles  around,  so  we  determined 
to  take  a  trip  up  to  Oregon  and  Washington 
Territory  to  see  the  brag  countries  of  the  north- 
west. 

There  is  great  competition  between  these 
points ;  and  though  the  regular  fare  is  ten  dol- 
lars, there  was  just  then  a  big  war  between  the 
ship-lines.  While  one  was  charging  no  fare,  the 
other  was  transporting  passengers  free  and 
boarding  them  besides.  This  was  a  very  good 
time  to  go  to  Portland ;  so  we  boarded  the 
steamer  Oregon,  which  glided  out  upon  the 
waters  and  steered  for  the  north. 

The  distance  is  five  hundred  miles;  and  in 
four  days  we  sailed  into  the  mouth  of  the  Co- 
lumbia River.  The  river  is  very  wide  and  deep 
here,  and  the  current  is  very  strong;  but  we 
steamed  up  to  where  the  Willamette  empties  in 
from  the  south,  and  then  cast  anchor  and  in 
boats  sailed  down  to  Portland,  and  to  Salem,  the 
capital  of  the  state. 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  391 

The  Willamette  valley  is  a  rich  and  beautiful 
country,  and,  I  suppose,  the  greatest  wheat-field 
on  the  continent.  Much  other  grain  is  also 
raised.  Low  mountains  Iiem  the  valley  on  either 
side,  and  the  slopes  are  covered  with  the  most 
beautiful  large  timber. 

Portland  and  Salem  are  both  pretty  cities; 
and  though  small  now,  the  rich  Willamette  soil 
promises  to  make  them  large  and  active  cities  in 
the  future. 

We  now  sailed  back  to  the  Columbia  and  up 
to  Walla  Walla,  a  little  town  on  the  Columbia 
shore  in  the  eastern  part  of  Washington  Terri- 
tory, where  the  Snake  River  brings  in  its  waters. 
Here  is  also  a  beautiful,  level,  valley  country, 
and  settlers  are  rearing  their  cabins  in  every  di- 
rection. Walla  Walla  has  as  glittering,  a  pros- 
pect as  any  other  upon  the  Pacific  slope,  though 
its  day  may  be  far  in  the  future. 

We  had  seen  heavy  forests,  but  Washington 
Territory  beats  anything  on  this  score  that  we 
ever  saw.  The  very  richest  soil  is  covered  with 
trees  from  three  to  six  feet  over,  and  standing  so 
closely  together  that  a  ray  of  sunshine  scarcely 
ever  gets  through  the  tangled  branches.  What 
has  been  cleared,  proves  to  be  very  productive ; 


392  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

but,  oh,  my  !  the  clearing.  Why,  it  would  take 
a  man  nearly  a  life-time  to  clear  himself  a  farm; 
for  even  when  the  trees  are  felled  and  burned, 
the  great  rooty  stumps  are  so  thick  that  no  farm- 
ing can  be  done  until  they  are  grubbed  and  blasted 
out.  This  will  necessarily  be  slow  work;  but  I 
prophesy  for  this  country  a  bright  future.  There 
are  numbers  of  saw-mills  buzzing  in  the  forests, 
and  much  of  the  finest  lumber  is  shipped  down 
to  the  coast  cities;  but  timber  being  also  good 
all  along  the  Pacific  slopes,  the  lumber  business 
is  not  very  profitable.  There  are  many  of  the 
straightest,  smoothest,  and  tallest  saplings  here 
that  were  ever  seen,  and  great  numbers  are  cut 
down  every  year  for  ship- masts. 

Imported  stock  is  bred  here  in  great  herds; 
and  numbers  of  the  very  largest  and  finest 
horses  are  sold  and  sent  out  from  here  every 
year.  The  climate  is  the  greatest  drawback  to 
the  country.  Like  in  California,  there  is  a  wet 
and  a  dry  season ;  but  the  former  lasts  about 
six  months  or  more,  during  which  time  it 
rains  almost  constantly,  and  settlers  say  the 
sun  is  hidden  sometimes  for  several  months. 
The  streams  then  overflow,  and  persons  can  fish 
all  over  their  farms — and  some  fine  white  salmon 


THROUGH  THE    WEST.  393 

and  other  varieties  are  caught.  Moss  grows  all 
over  the  roofs  of  the  buildings,  and  hangs  from 
the  forest-limbs  clear  down  to  the  ground.  Bur- 
ing  this  season  persons  do  not  pretend  to  do 
much  but  fish  and  float  logs;  but  when  the  dry 
season  sets  in  the  weather  is  delightful,  and  it 
is  as  pretty  a  country  to  live  in  as  lies  between 
the  oceans. 

When  we  were  ready  to  go  south  again  we 
found  that  the  Republican  (one  of  the  competi- 
tors between  Portland  and  Frisco)  had  been 
wrecked,  and  the  Oregon  line  was  now  charging 
its  own  rates;  and  the  fare  for  our  return  was 
sufficient  to  make  up  for  our  free  ride. 

We  ran  out  of  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia^ 
and  had  not  gone  far  when  we  hove  in  sight  of 
the  stranded  Republican,  reeling  upon  the  rocks. 
The  wind  was  high,  and  the  waves  were  lashing 
up  against  her  sides ;  and  she  was  heaving  and 
groaning,  while  most  of  her  rigging  had  been 
torn  away  by  the  gale.  She  proved  a  total 
wreck;  and  several  lives  were  lost.  There  was- 
great  excitement  about  the  matter,  and  the  cap- 
tain was  strongly  accused  of  being  bought  off  by 
the  other  line,  and  purposely  driving  her  awreck; 
for  it  was  shown  that  on  the  night  of  the  acci- 


394 


dent  the  wind  was  very  high  and  the  sea  was 
rolling  terribly,  and  the  sailors  pleaded  with  the 
captain  to  go  ashore  before  dark,  or  else  run  out 
farther  on  the  ocean  out  of  danger  from  the 
breakers.  But  he  was  heedless,  and  the  conse- 
quence was  that  in  the  darkness  of  the  night 
they  were  driven  upon  the  bars. 

Well,  we  ran  down  to  the  south,  most  of  the 
time  in  sight  of  land,  until  we  again  reached 
Frisco,  and  from  there  we  again  embarked  for 
Santa  Barbara,  on  the  southern  coast  of  Califor- 
nia, a  distance  of  about  two  hundred  miles. 

We  now  reached  the  most  delightful  spot  on 
earth,  where  winter  never  comes,  but  where  the 
bright  summer  lasts  the  whole  year  round.  The 
cool  fall  winds  were  now  blowing  in  the  central 
and  northern  states,  and  the  bitter  frosts  were 
clipping  the  leaves  from  the  forest-trees ;  but 
here  the  soft  zephyrs  were  breathing  calmly,  and 
the  tender  foliage  of  the  trees  and  plants  was 
green  and  fresh  as  in  the  month  of  May,  while 
the  air  was  laded  with  the  breath  of  the  lovely 
flowers  and  delicious  fruits.  The  rich  oranges, 
lemons,  and  figs,  which  are  considered  such  deli- 
cacies in  the  East,  were  here  hanging  upon  the 
native  bush,  and  we  went  forth  and  plucked 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  395 

them  in  all  their  natural  beauty.  How  lovely! 
What  a  paragon  of  beauty  !  A  life  here  would 
be  but  a  continuous  summer's  day. 

The  country  around  Los  Angeles,  which  lies  a 
little  to  the  south,  is  a  perfect  Eden,  and  the  city 
is  a  perfect  gem;  and  persons  seeking  a  peer  for 
paradise,  where  December  is  pleasant  as  May, 
should  journey  to  California  and  anchor  in  the 
sweet,  sunny  South,  where  the  breath  of  heaven 
fans  the  shore. 

From  here  we  went  down  the  Southern  Pacific 
Railroad,  and  branched  oft'  to  Prescott,  the  capi- 
tal of  Arizona.  Here  we  met  the  great  General 
John  C.  Fremont,  the  daring  explorer  who 
served  the  Government  so  nobly  between  the 
years  1842-8,  by  his  exploits  through  the  bleak, 
lonely  mountains  and  wild  lands  of  the- savage, 
and  whose  talent  the  nation  has  felt  and  acknowl- 
edged. He  was  born  in  South  Carolina  in  the 
year  1813,  and  though  his  great  name  was  once 
in  every  mouth  on  the  Atlantic  slope,  and  even 
sung  in  the  national  campaign  of  1856,  the  orient 
has  almost  forgotten  her  son  and  servant,  whose 
lips  have  touched  the  waters  of  every  river  be- 
tween the  shores,  and  whose  hairs  have  grown 
gray  in  her  service ;  and  far  beyond  the  Missis- 


396  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

sippi  he  is  to-day  governing  the  dismal,  desert 
territory  of  Arizona,  his  youth  gone,  glory 
flown,  and  naught  but  his  insignificant  guberna- 
torial salary  to  guard  poverty  from  his  door. 

The  climate  here  is  intensely  hot,  and  the  sur- 
face is  dry  and  sandy.  General  Fremont  thinks 
that  a  portion  of  the  territory  could  be  flooded 
from  the  Pacific,  and  thereby  be  made  produc- 
tive; and  his  scheme  has  been  presented  to  con- 
gress. 

The}7  were  just  building  the  Southern  Pacific 
Railroad  through  here  when  we  were  there,  and, 
from  the  intense  heat  and  burning  sands,  it  wa& 
found  impossible  to  work  at  it  except  about  three 
or 'four  months  in  the  year.  The  road  is,  how- 
ever, now  finished,  and  the  Union  Pacific  has  a, 
rival  in  the  route  across  the  continent. 

On  our  return  back  to  Frisco  we  went  up  a, 
branch  of  the  Central  Pacific,  and  ran  out  on 
the  stage  to  the  big  trees  upon  the  Sierra  Nevada 
slopes.  We  had  stood  in  the  forests  in  Ohio, 
and  looked  up  at  the  great  oaks  and  called  them 
mammoths;  but  great  glory !  here  was  a  whole 
forest  in  a  single  tree.  The  trunks  are  from  ten 
to  fifteen  feet  in  diameter,  with  summits  reared 
so  high  that  they  appear  to  sweep  the  sky  as 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  397 

they  are  swayed  to  and  fro  by  the  upper  cur- 
rents; and  away  up  among  the  spreading  boughs 
nestle  and  scream  the  great  eagles,  looking  like 
sparrows.  The  stage-route  runs  clear  through 
the  forest,  and  right  by  the  largest  trees,  which 
rear  their  heads  to  the  enormous  height  of  three 
and  four  hundred  feet,  and  right  through  the 
hollow  trunk  of  the  king  of  the  forest,  which 
fell  in  a  storm  some  years  ago.  Some  idea  can 
be  formed  of  the  immensity  of  this  tree  when  I 
tell  you  that  the  driver  keeps  his  seat  and  a  four- 
horse  stage-coach  runs  lengthwise  through  its 
body  with  perfect  ease.  People  are  living  in 
some  of  the  trees,  and  have  doors  and  windows 
cut  out;  and  some  very  fair-looking  two-story 
houses  are  made  with  these  natural  walls.  Many 
of  the  trees  have  been  felled,  and  it  is  found  that 
all  the  largest  are  but  shells.  One  was  cut  down, 
divided  into  section^  and  taken  to  the  Centen- 
nial. The  most  interesting  part  of  our  journey 
was  the  curling  route  among  these  towering  Pa- 
cific monuments;  and  all  tourists  to  the  West, 
wishing  to  see  the  curiosities  of  the  world, 
should  not  fail  to  ride  out  among  the  wonders 
upon  the  Sierra  Nevada  slopes. 


398  KOMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

We  now  returned  to  Frisco  and  prepared  to 
return  to  Ohio.  We  sailed  across  the  bay,  and,, 
taking  a  last  long  look  over  the  tossing  sea,  we 
bid  the  waves  good- by,  and  then  rattled  along 
over  the  iron  trail  of  the  Union  Pacific,  reach- 
ing home  safe  and  sound,  when  the  snow-flakes 
were  flying  in  the  wintry  air  of  1879.  How  un- 
natural all  things  appeared  !  Where  are  the 
great  hills  which  used  to  almost  barrier  the  pub- 
lic way?  Why,  the  roads  are  almost  smooth  as 
a  floor.  Where  are  the  big  fields  that  it  used  to 
take  days  to  plow,  and  the  great  forests  through 
which  we  used  to  hunt?  All  appear  but  garden- 
spots,  and  fit  for  the  spade  instead  of  the  plow; 
and  the  woods  are  too  small  for  a  home  for 
even  the  squirrel  or  wood- chuck.  All  efforts  to 
see  the  old  homestead  as  in  years  gone  by  are 
vain.  The  towering  peaks  of  the  Rockies,  and 
the  steep,  stony  slopes  of  the  Green  Horns  can 
not  be  banished  from  my  mind,  and  the  great 
world  of  level  prairie  is  too  fresh  in  my  memory. 

I  have  been  home  now  some  time ;  and  to  this 
day  farms  are  but  gardens  and  the  hills  are  as 
clods.  Like  experience  can  only  prove  the  effect. 
I  have  roamed  through  twenty  states  and  territo- 
ries, and  have  in  a  measure  satisfied  that  desire 


THROUGH    THE    WEST.  399 

which  was  the  source  of  my  boyish  dreams* 
The  adventure  is  but  familiar  talk,  and  the  wild 
chase  is  but  common  exercise.  But  how  much 
better  am  I  off  than  he  who  is  content  without 
travel  ?  I  now  only  realize  how  wonderful  is  the 
world  and  its  workings,  and  how  much  there  is 
that  I  never  shall  see.  Travel  is  prone  to  dis- 
turb content ;  and  discontent  is  the  greatest 
enemy  to  the  human  mind.  Of  course,  this  is 
directed  to  persons  who  travel  to  satisfy  the 
mind;  for  they  whom  circumstances  crowd  from 
home  show  pluck  and  shrewdness  in  careful 
prospecting.  I  can  assure  you  that  I  have  seen 
a  great  deal,  and  much  that  I  never  wish  to  see 
again.  And  if  in  this  brief  work  I  have  suc- 
ceeded in  giving  my  readers  even  a  limited  idea 
of  the  country  through  which  I  passed,'!  feel 
sure  that  they  will  relieve  me  of  my  responsible 
undertaking;  for  it  is  by  far  too  much  for  these 
few  pages. 


400  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 


¥HO    SHOULD    GO    ¥EST. 


Since  I  arrived  from  my  tour  through  the 
West  scarcely  a  day  passes  that  there  are  not 
some  persons,  from  almost  every  occupation  and 
position  in  life,  interrogating  me  as  to  the 
chances  and  prospects  in  the  West.  A  general 
answer  can  not  be  given,  for  circumstances  vary. 
Though  I  can  not  be  as  general  and  emphatic  in 
my  advice  as  was  the  great  Horace  Greeley 
when  he  said,  "Young  man,  go  west  and  grow 
up  with  the  country,"  I  can  say  from  real  expe- 
rience and  practical  observations  that  for  some 
toward  the  Pacific  there  is  wealth.  I  emphasize 
the  word  "some;"  for  there  are  dispositions  that 
will  never  prosper  in  this  noted,  novel  land. 

It  should  be  remembered  that  going  west  from 
Ohio  is  not  going  west  from  New  York ;  for  the 
splendid  forests,  the  beautiful,  rich  valleys,  and 
the  great  commercial  advantages  fade  quickly 
before  the  emigrant  when  he  leaves  the  Missis- 


THROUGH   THE    WEST.  401 

sippi  and  marches  toward  the  western  sea. 
"When  the  Missouri  is  once  crossed,  the  great 
American  stage  is  then  entered  upon,  where  the 
plays  are  different  and  numerous  and  where  the 
shrewdest  men  are  actors.  Instead  of  the  hones  t 
peasant,  grubbing  and  planting  by  his  little 
cabin  in  the  dense  forest,  there  are  the  trickster, 
the  knave,  the  thief,  each  playing  his  faithful 
part.  Business  is  all  swept  along  by  the  wave 
of  excitement, — as  can  be  collected  from  the 
present  work, — and  under  such  circumstances 
there  are  very  many  who  can  not  stand  prosper- 
ity. Wages  are  always  good.  Money  is  usually 
made  easy ;  and  the  result  of  such  conditions  is 
only  too  well  known.  Fine  dress  is  not  re- 
quired, and  money  is  plenty.  For  him  who  has 
enough  control  over  himself  to  take  advantage 
of  the  situation  there  is  a  glittering  prospect. 
There  are  persons  on  the  prairies  arid  in  the 
mountains  to-day  who  are  gathering  money  like 
leaves  in  autumn. 

I  have  tried  to  describe  the  country  as  it  is ; 
and  my  readers  of  different  occupations  can 
draw  conclusions  and  choose  localities  for  them- 
selves. But  my  advice  to  those  who  are  com- 
fortably nestling  in  the  folds  of  civilization, 

26 


402  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS 

where  the  church-bell  strikes,  where  the  school- 
houses  dot  the  land,  and  where  utter  want  is 
ever  barred,  is,  Stay  where  you  are ;  educate 
your  children  and  be  content  with  good.  To 
those  who  have  no  money, — especially  those  who 
have  families, — I  will  say,  For  God's  sake  stay 
where  help  is  near  and  charity  abounds ;  for  I 
assure  you  that  I  have  seen  the  destitute  in  a 
strange  land. 

Of  course,  there  are  beautiful  lands  in  parts 
of  several  states  and  territories,  where  good 
farms  can  be  had,  and  where,  some  time  in  the 
future,  the  steeples  of  great  cities  will  glitter  in 
the  sunlight.  There  is,  undoubtedly,  an  opening 
here  for  the  agriculturist;  but  emigrants  must 
expect  to  find  the  country  new,  the  facilities  and 
accommodations  scarce,  and  the  neighbors  poor. 
To  be  safe,  they  should  always  have  sufficient 
capital  to  run  them  a  year  or  two.  I  have 
known  persons  to  drift  west  with  the  excite- 
ment and  arrive  in  a  splendid  land  without  a 
cent,  as  though  expecting  to  find  bread  upon  the 
bushes,  crops  ready  to  harvest,  and  wealthy 
neighbors.  The  first  year's  crop  failed  because 
of  insects,  drought,  or  some  other  peculiarity  of 
the  western  prairie,  and  their  condition  was  then 


THROUGH   THE  WEST.  403 

more  deplorable  than  the  poorest  from  whence 
they  came. 

There  are  persons  who  make  it  a  business  to 
accommodate  the  unfortunate  settlers  with  mon- 
ey; but  the  security  is  mortgage  on  property, 
and  the  interest  is  usually  two  per  cent  per 
month,  or  twenty-four  per  cent  per  year,  and 
some  are  obliged  to  pay  fifty  per  cent.  Borrow- 
ed money  never  fails  to  produce  a  crop;  but  the 
soil  may  fall,  and  produce  is  also  of  poor  sale. 
From  this  hint  warning  consultations  can  be 
drawn,  and  persons  with  families  should  take 
heed. 

To  the  agriculturalist  I  can  speak  favorably  of 
Kansas,  Nebraska  (page  40),  and  eastern  Da- 
kota; but  should  the  Indian  Territory  be  opened 
to  settlement  (as  it  will  soon  be),  there  is  the 
place  to  fly,  for  it  is  acknowledged  the  hot-bed 
of  the  West.  Emigrants  will  find  it  convenient 
if  prepared  with  a  mess-box  as  described  (page 
94).  For  cattle  and  sheep  business  on  a  big  scale, 
go  to  Kansas,  Colorado,  and  New  Mexico  (page 
168).  For  health-giving  and  delightful  summer- 
resorts  (and  I  might  here  add  that  there  are 
thousands  dying  in  the  East  to-day  who  would 
be  hale  and  hearty  in  the  West),  I  can  speak 


404 


ROMSPERT  S   TRAVELS 


highly  of  Manitou  Springs,  Colorado  (page  258 
-264),  and  also  Las  Vegas  Hot  Springs,  New 
Mexico.  The  latter  are  twenty-two  in  number, 
and  beautifully  located  about  four  miles  above 
the  pretty  city  of  Las  Vegas.  They  have  an  al- 
titude of  six  thousand  four  hundred  feet — the 
elevation  which  has  made  Colorado  such  a  favor- 
ite resort  for  those  affected  with  pulmonary  com- 
plaints— with  a  decided  advantage  over  some  of 
the  northern  resorts  as  to  latitude  and  health- 
giving  climate.  The  character  of  the  water  is 
similar  to  that  of  the  famous  Hot  Springs  of 
Arkansas,  as  shown  by  the  following  chemical 
analysis  made  by  Prof.  Hayden,  United  States 
geologist : 


CONSTITUKNTS. 

SPRING  NO.  1. 

NO.   2 

NO.  3 

Sodium  carbonate  
Calcium  carbonate      ) 
Magnesium  carbon'te  j 
Sodium  sulphate  

1.72 
1.08 
14.12 

117 
10.63 
15.43 

5.00 
11.43 
16  21 

Sodium  chloride  

27.26 
Trace 

24.37 
Trace 

27.34 
Trace 

Strong  trace 

Strong  trace 

Silicid  acid  

1.04 

Trace 

2  15 

Trace 

Trace 

Trace 

Bromine    

Trace 

Trace 

Trace 

Temperature  

130°F 

123°F 

123°F 

This  showing  speaks  volumes  to  those  familiar 
with  thermal  springs.      Their  waters   are  of  a 


THROUGH    THE   WEST.  405 

superior  medicinal  character.  The  climate  is 
not  bleak  nor  harsh  in  winter,  and  is  very  brac- 
ing and  pleasant  in  summer.  The  plateau  upon 
which  they  are  located  may  be  considered  the 
great  sanitarium  in  this  country  for  lung- dis- 
eases. Prominent  Boston  gentlemen  have  pur- 
chased and  improved  the  property;  and  every 
visitor  is  delighted. 

Now,  in  conclusion,  I  will  again  assert  that 
there  are  splendid  opportunities  for  persons  of 
most  classes  and  occupations.  But  I  almost  hesi- 
tate to  advise  young  men  to  go  there  (page  221) ; 
for,  as  was  said,  all  is  excitement.  The  society 
is  bad,  and  vices  are  so  numerous  (202)  that 
many  persons  will  fall  under  such  circumstan- 
ces; and  such  a  fall  is  grieving  many  a  good 
parent  to-day. 

Work  can  be  had  on  the  prairie  or  in  the 
mountains  at  any  time  in  the  summer-season ; 
and  wages  are  always  good.  But  to  succeed,  you 
must  be  firm,  resolve  to  resist  the  evils,  and  be 
not  led  astray.  Take  care  of  your  earnings,  and 
you  can  save  money. 

I  have  been  as  elaborate  in  my  description  as 
space  will  permit,  and  upon  facts  stated  my 
readers  may  rely  and  base  their  actions.  What- 


406  ROMSPERT'S  TRAVELS. 

ever  my  ideas  taken  from  this  volume  may  be, 
I  assure  you  that  my  chosen  profession  and 
peculiar  situation  are  all  that  keep  me  from 
following  the  sun  in  his  course  to-morrow. 


For  I  know  full  well 
That  the  future  will  tell 
The  advantages  hidden 
In  the  now  rude  West. 


THE      END. 


